


It's The Avengers Season 1

by MaladaptiveNinjaReturns



Series: It's The Avengers [1]
Category: Loki - Fandom, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - The Office Fusion, Angst, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-18
Updated: 2019-03-21
Packaged: 2019-10-30 23:38:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 29,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17838194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaladaptiveNinjaReturns/pseuds/MaladaptiveNinjaReturns
Summary: A series of the Avengers going about their daily lives post infinity war with three twists- Loki is going to live with them, the reader is someone entirely new to the bunch and the entire thing is going on in the setting style of The Office





	1. Episode 1: Pilot

_**Time** : Events post the Infinity War_

_Everyone is alive and healthy. Everyone survived. Earth is dying slowly; the usual. Government around the world still sucks. The Avengers still don’t give a flying fuck. The former cannot do much to control the heroes of the hour as when last Monday they tried to declare them hostile and ‘to be taken under government surveillance’ people took to the streets in protest everywhere for an entire day, hampering the global economy within hours._

_Now it knows better than to meddle with the 'fan-favourites’ and have declared that they’ll create a peace force branch to work with the heroes. It is definitely going to be directed by Everett K Ross._

Everyone has gathered in the new Avengers facility one by one as it is finally ready to house all of them apart from being their training palace, tactical playground, therapy address, experimentation hub and, in Tony’s words, 'a new place to bond at with the fam’.

Natasha and Bruce are sitting in the wooden-floored living room, chatting and smiling-one would even say blushing- as they see a group of people carrying camera and sound equipment walk into the huge hall.

Steve and Bucky follow them and look at Natasha and Bruce with questioning eyes.

“Do you know what’s going on?” Wanda asks as she comes out of the kitchen.

Everyone shakes their head all the while staring at the people setting up their equipment, directing the cameras towards them.

“Woah!” Sam exclaims as he enters the scene, “are we being interviewed?”

“What are they going to interview you about?” Clint commented as he joined the rest, “whether your metal wings shed or if  you’ll migrate to the Poles?”

Sam quirked up an eyebrow as his eyes followed Clint. “Still better than being called a hawk with arrows. A harrow! Oh, that’s catchy!”

Clint chuckled as he poured himself some coffee, eyeing the Falcon all the time.

“Aw look at you guys,” Scott called from the fridge door, his mouth full of choco-chip ice cream, “birds of some feather and all.”

“But seriously though, what’s happening?”

“History is happening, folks,” Tony announced as he entered the hall with his arms wide open as Rhodey followed him with a sharp exhale.

“Something to be witnessed and shared by all of us gathered h-”

Rhodey cut him short. “He’s hired people to film us- all of us- as we go about our daily lives. He’s pulling 'The Office’ on us.”

Tony sat down in the brown chair by the window side in one the rooms marked 'BTS (not reserved for the K-Pop group)’ and smiled at the camera.

****Tony** :** _Hey! You know me. You know the Avengers. We’re pretty much really popular here on earth. We just finished the big fight with that Titan and are taking some days off, you know. Pepper and I are getting married next month. So that’s the highlight of my life right there. As for this whole documentary thing, I felt we should have a piece of something nice to show the little one on his way. What? Yes, Pepper and I are pregnant. Very pregnant. A month pregnant. You guys are to film everything here as it goes for as long as we feel like it. This documentary is only to be seen by me and the people I authorise- which is pretty much all the Avengers and other people that’ll be staying here. If this goes outside the facility I swear to God no one on this planet or any other will hire your ass. You hear me? Good. *the signature over the glasses glare*_

“Before all of you settle down…like Scott,” Tony looked at the Ant-Man-who was on his second bucket of ice cream- with sheer amusement, “I have something to tell you.”

Rhodey opened to speak his mouth but was stopped by Tony.

“Bup bup bup. Let me speak,” he objected before turning to the confused and somewhat tired faces, “Alright. Almost all of you are here. Wanda’s brother is coming over in a while and Thor is done settling his subjects somewhere in England in the 1500s I hope. He’s coming here with his brother right about now and they’ll settle in the east wing and there is an-”

“Wait, what?” Everyone around him fluttered in surprise as they heard 'Thor’s brother’ was coming here.

“Please don’t tell that asshole’ll be staying here.” Clint stood up, skipping his coffee mug and going straight for the pot, knowing full well what the answer was.

Tony crossed his arms over his chest as he waited for everyone to take in the silent nod and go berserk for a second. Everyone except Bruce.

“Okay, everyone needs to calm down,” Bruce pleaded, “he helped us all with the…with the thing and we all know it’ll be better if he stays under our scrutiny considering he will be staying on earth whether we like it or not.”

No one spoke anything as they looked at Natasha pass judgment on to him.

“You knew about this?”

Bruce looked at her and then at Tony, who pretended to be busy on his phone for as long as it took. “Maybe?”

The sound of the elevator arriving made everyone turn towards the entrance as they stood with their most intimidating, heaven’s judgement power poses as the elevator doors opened.

You walked out and looked at the camera’s pointed at you before turning to the people looking like they were already planning to kill you.

“You’re not Loki,” Scott emptied the second box as he pointed at you with his spoon, “you don’t have death-defying cheekbones.”

You looked at them with confusion and uncertainty, not knowing whether to step forward or go back where you came from.

“No, I’m not…what?”

The elevator doors started closing as Tony caught them and gestured you to come out in the hall.

“No. She’s Y/N. Everybody, meet Y/N. She’ll be living with us here. So, get to know her already. Legolas and Elsa already met her.”

Clint looked up from where he stood and his furrowed brows turned up as he smiled at you.

“I remember you. So you finally agreed to become an Avenger?”

Before you could answer, a barrage of questions was thrown at you.

“Do you have powers?”

“What’s the range of your powers?”

“Do you use weapons?”

“What’s your choice of weapons?”

“Have you had any previous training?”

You felt your heart race faster at every new question as you stood there sweating through your palms, not allowing yourself to breathe.

****You**** **:** _*panicking* Nothing! I don’t know anything! I still don’t know why I’m here in the first place. And who the hell are you guys?_

****Wanda**** **:** _She’s so small and cute. The moment she entered the hall, I could see fireworks go off in her mind. Not my mind. Her mind. No, not the good kind. The kind that blows buildings. And there was a soundtrack going on in the background._

*pauses as she stares into a void before turning back to camera* Are we sure she’s definitely an adult? I think Pietro will like her.

****Natasha** :** _*looks at the camera with the most unreadable expression, her arms crossed across her chest* why do you care if she’s an assassin or not?_

*good ten seconds of uncomfortable dead silence*

****Bucky**** **:** _*looking at the camera and then at the crew standing behind it and then back at the camera* what am I supposed to do here?_

****Scott**** **:** _Are we sure this girl’s not Loki? I know that guy can shapeshift. You never know. I once disguised Antwanette as my pet sheep. No one noticed it for a month. A month._

Tony introduced you to everyone as Rhodey took your bags despite you insisting on carrying them to wherever it was that you were staying while Tony filled everyone in. “She’s just here till she completes her college. She’s an old friend’s daughter who we’ll be taking care of,” he stated, looking at everyone for a positive response.

“Who are you adopting now Stark?” A voice thundered from the entrance. Thor and Loki entered the hall, the latter taking cautious but composed steps towards the crowd gathered together staring daggers at him.

“So good to see you too, everyone.” He sang with a smirk over his face.

Half the eyes rolled so hard in the room as they tried to show their discomfort at the idea of the God of Mischief staying with them.

“Relax, little spider.” Loki piped at Natasha, “I’m not happy with the arrangement either.”

“Don’t flatter yourself, greasy,” Clint said as he smudged his knife clean, “we’re devastated to point of committing a murder in broad daylight.”

Loki was about to say something, as Thor’s hand came forward to stop the brewing squabble when the elevator spoke again, hurried steps coming out of them.

“Oh hi everyone! I’m Peter-Man. Parker! I meant Parker.” the high-pitched voice of the breathless and adrenaline dowsed boy announced. Tony looked at him with concern as his eyes settled on the tiny brown coloured puppy in his hand.

“Kid, what are you doing with that pup?” His voice turned soft enough for Peter to calm down a bit, not letting it go unnoticed by the others present in the room.

“Ned and I were volunteering at this pet shelter yesterday that MJ works at. All other animals were adopted except this little one.” Peter’s own eyes turning into that of a little pup, making everyone shift to look the young spiderling in concern. All except Loki, who was confused at what was going on.

Loki: I take the words I told Black Widow back. I forgot there was another puny spider in here. He’s so tiny why is he even in the same room as these psychopaths?

*pauses*

I’m a sociopath.

*camera zooms into Loki’s dark stare*

Update your dictionaries, you dolts.

Just when Peter started explaining, you and Rhodey walked in.

“I decided to take him with me and foster till he finds a home. But Coco hasn’t eaten anything and he just keeps lying in the corner of the house.” Peter stroked the little pup’s hair, who really looked sick.

“The vet at the shelter ran some tests and said he is fine but I don’t feel he is Mr Stark. He is not even wagging his tail. So I brought him here hoping Dr Banner could help.”

****Scott**** **:** _*tears welling up in his eyes* he’s so cute. So sad and so cute. *wiping the tears away* And the dog too._

Everyone started quipping in suggestions to get the little pupper excited. From 'liquid diet’ and 'chewable toys’ to 'bad stomach’ and 'chilly weather’, everyone had pitched in their side while Loki leaned over the table and looked at the camera with disinterest.

****Loki** :** _*sighed* Of all the damaged people in this building, you’d think at least one would know what the tiny animal could be craving for._

“How long was he at the shelter?” You asked with genuine curiosity as all eyes turned to your voice.

Peter looked at Tony and then back at you. “Uhh…two months. His mother died and he was left at the shelter by his mother’s family.”

You raised both your hands in the direction of the little curled up ball of fur looking at you through his wet brown eyes. “May I?”

Peter hesitated for a bit before carefully putting little Coco in your hands. You cooed at Coco in your high pitched but soft voice as you patted his little body and swayed him around in your arms, cuddling and playing with his ears as you slowly made your way to the kitchen to fix a bowl of lukewarm milk for him. Setting down a towel over the kitchen island, you put the pupper and his bowl on it and sat down beside him letting him take in his surroundings. He made a whimpering sound, making Peter and Scott wince with new found joy in the distance. Coco looked at you, sniffing your hands that you kept beside him for assurance and went for the bowl nose first. He came back up to look at you again. You cheered him up and watched as his little tail sway for a movement, making him go for the bowl again.

****Loki** :** _*smug face* And it still wasn’t one of them._

_*camera zooms in a little as his brows furrow* who is she?_

****Y/N**** **:** _I’m Y/N. I’ve really come here to resume my studies in psychology. Mr Stark was kind enough to open his…avengers facility for me. I still don’t know why here though but I’m not complaining. Wait, who’s asking about me?_

****Tony** :** _She not only made Clint pay for his coffee and my coffee but also made him go round the block in search for something that wasn’t a food truck or the next avenger recruit when we first met her. And if that wasn’t enough, *camera zooms in* she made Sargent Fancy Hair smile. She, who is NOT Steve, did that. Smile._

_*pauses as he takes in a long thought with a gulp of air before whispering*_

_This girl has unspeakable force over these men. *camera zooms in closer* he smiled._

**Y/N** : _Oh so he’s Loki! Loki? *snickers* what kind of name is that? That sounds like something you’d call a boring green vegetable._

_*ten seconds later*_

_Oh my God! There is a vegetable that’s called Loki!! Look! *raises the phone to show that camera the search result while laughing hard in the background*_

****Loki** :** _What did she say about me?_

_*shocked and disgusted on hearing the answer*_

_Everyone came around you, complimenting your effort as you told them you had taken care of lots of abandoned stray dogs when you were little. Of course, everyone but Loki, as he stood in the background, appearing bored and uninterested, all the while stealing glances at you._

**Loki** : _Well, I guess I’ll have plenty of time to show little Y/N what this green vegetable is capable of doing to her._

_*a devilish grin creeps on his face*_


	2. Episode 2: The Vibes

“‘Morning Y/N!”

Wanda called out to your drowsy figure, still clad in your PJs, coming out of your room into The Dorm’s lounge, followed by 'morning princess’ from Sam, 'Got some good amount of rest?’ from Bruce, 'please tell me it wasn’t you snoring last night’ from Clint, 'good morning, Y/N, would you like some coffee?’ from Steve and a 'So you are Y/N!’ from an overly enthusiastic Pietro.

**Y/N** : _Woah! Had I known I was going to live with such enthusiastic early birds I would have never let Mr Stark bring me here. Not that these people are bad, I just don’t wake up well to loud sounds._

_*nodding your head in agreement with yourself*_

_Also, who calls their sleeping quarters Dorms? What are they? Eighteen?_

You greeted everyone back as you made your way to the kitchen space that housed all breakfast items and snacks for the Avengers. Steve offered you coffee while Bucky was already making some tea for you and him. He knew from your previous encounter you weren’t a coffee girl. You were taking out a tiny bottle of a liquid concentrate from one of the drawers when Sam came over and took Bucky’s mug.

“That’s my tea, Sam,” his hoarse voice tried to stay calm. Sam took one good sip and put it back on the counter, “Still want it?”

**Y/N** : _*scrunching her nose* hmm, scratch that. They’re twelve._

Loki came out from his room into the hall, giving the lounge his signature smile that sent nearly all of them to turn to ice towards the frost giant. Ignoring it all, he came towards you and picked up your mug of tea. Bucky started to protest at the action when you interrupted him. “Oh, it’s alright. I wanted to eat something before my tea anyways. Here, keep back the sweetener,” you asked Bucky, bringing forward the tiny bottle you’d taken out earlier.

“I’ll take that for my tea, thank you very much,” Loki grabbed the bottle and put three drops into his tea.

**Clint** : _It hasn’t even been twenty-four hours and he’s already started. *sips coffee straight from the pot in his hand*_

_*looks far away deep in thought before coming back* should I donate him as a sacrifice to the flat-earthers? If they ever find the edge of the world at least they’ll kick him down into oblivion._

**Loki** : _I always find joy in simplistic things. *sips tea from the same mug*_

_It’s fun to see tiny actions or faults irritate the small human mind, forcing them to lose their sanity little by little. That’s what I plan to do to this excuse of a puny human that is Y/N._

You smiled back at Loki, surprising him a little with the genuineness of the emotion that reflected in your eyes. “Happy to help,” you jested before taking out some eggs from the fridge to make yourself an omelette. “Would you like some, Loki?” You asked, making his smile falter for a bit before he looked into the camera and went back to his tea.

**Y/N** : _I grew up with two brothers. One older and one younger. The crap they used to pull on me is nothing compared to what happened ten minutes ago. The trickster better up his game._

What no one else, except the camera was noticing was the heart eyes Pietro was having for Y/N.

**Pietro** : _Who? Y/N? Yeah, she’s cool. Don’t know much about her but she seems okay. Average. Not the bad average. The good average. *crossing his arms while moving uncomfortably in the chair* She’s good. She’s…she’s fine. *a hint of smile runs over his lips as his cheeks start to turn red*_

You got ready for the day to let Wanda and Bruce give you and Pietro- the newcomers- a once over of the facility. Loki and Scott joined in as an unwelcome fifth and sixth wheel to have a bit of fun of their own.

**Scott** : _I don’t know what’s happening as I woke up fifteen minutes ago but I am down for whatever it is the kids are doing. *gives two thumbs up to the camera with a wide grin*_

“This is the east wing of the facility, as you know,” Wanda stated with excitement as she pointed out while everyone walked behind them and Bruce, “it has our Dorms and lounge, our dining and kitchen, and study on three separate floors.”

“We are now entering the north wing.” Bruce took over as Wanda stopped on the way to pick up a message for her from Friday, “This one houses your training area…sorry, the Avengers training area and relaxation space. I’m sorry I’m not sure if you’re allowed here Y/N though I don’t think it should be a problem.”

You were about to give a modest reply when Loki thought it best to interrupt. “Why not? She could really use some sort of manual labour while she’s here. From external as well as…internal threats.”

Bruce and Wanda looked at Loki with judgment with a hint of fear in their eyes- the fear not from him, but from themselves.

“Oh my God! You’re right, Loki,” you pointed out, “I think I do need some sort of training to help me put my stress and rage that I usually aim at another person to some productive use. So true about the internal threat buddy.” Bruce and Wanda looked at you with admiration as they proceeded to show you more of the wing. Loki crossed his arms over his chest cocking an eyebrow at you as he watched you follow the doctor and the witch. Scott lagged behind, looking at you and Loki with suspicion in his eyes before turning to the camera and pointing in your direction with furrowed brows.

**Scott** : _Is it just me or do I sense a little bit of a 'love’ vibe between those two? Eh? Eh?_

You were in the west wing now, leaving Wanda and a very reluctant Pietro behind as they’d been called back by Steve.

“This is research and development wing. We’ve got the best of the machines doing our work for us, thanks to Tony and Shuri,” Bruce announced proudly before watching your blank faces. “Oh, Shuri is King T'Challa’s sister. She’s a genius.”

“T'Challa as in the Black Panther?” You asked with piqued interest, Loki’s ears following the change in the pitch of your voice.

Bruce affirmed.

“Cool!” You and Scott said in unison with stars in your eyes, making Loki roll his eyes hard before turning to the counter of multiple types of equipment you were checking out. Scott was at the opposite side of the room drawn in by a structure made out black metallic balls, trying his level best not to touch them.

“Do you know what that is?” Loki asked from behind you. You picked up the tablet lying in front of you as you studied the data regarding research it displayed.

“Fascinating!” You breathed, your eyes going wide, “this is a study on the brain cell’s ability to pick up messages from the…uhh…cosmos…the universe, whatever you call it and trans-”

“Translate it. Yes, allow me to explain it to you in ways your little brain can understand.” Loki snatched the tablet from your hand as he went on about the magic of the cosmos.

**Y/N** : _Mansplaining! *smiles* He nearly got me there. It actually would have gotten on my nerves until he started rambling about the research through the example of his telekinetic abilities. *chuckles* His eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. He didn’t even realise when he broke his character._

**Loki** : _*angry* I didn’t break my character. *camera pans in* I’ve just never had someone hear me digress about my magical abilities as she did._

_*camera pans in again* Oh, that sly fox. She’s cleverer than she shows to be. But not to worry. I still have to play my final move._

**Y/N** : _Nope. I don’t think I’m clever. I’m just…observant. Why not cle- *deep inhale* I spent thirty-five minutes searching for my phone in the middle of the night yesterday with my phone’s flashlight._

_*camera pans in* I’m dumb as hell._

**Bruce** : _Y/N seems like a good kid. I’m still not sure why she’s living here with a crowd that composes mostly of a bunch degenerates, depressed or anxious minds. *smiles* She’s so…so nice and-and *sighs* normal. *shuts his mouth as expression changes to grim* and then there’s Loki. The polar opposite of this girl. Why is_ he _living with us?_

The south wing was the most extravagant thing you’d seen in your life. It was purely for the purpose of experiencing high society luxury. A dance hall, a cigarette room, a grand buffet room, an entirely different room for 'coats’, and so much more. “Why do we have this here?”

“Ask Tony. I have zero ideas about this section,” Bruce responded to your question, going straight out through the French door opening into the lawn ahead.  Scott, who was nibbling on some marshmallows, was about to go after the scientist when he stopped in his tracks as he saw Loki take you by the arm and disappear into the huge dining hall. He was quiet on his feet as he pressed his ear to the wall while coming near the door.

Loki took your hands in his, watching your air falter for a second.

“You seem really new to all this lady Y/N. I can only imagine how lonely you must feel within the crowd of such abnormality, wondering what purpose could you possibly have here.”

Loki moved his fingers over your bare arms, chasing the goosebumps developing on your skin. “But you should know that I am here for you if you ever need me, my precious Y/N. For anything. And I do mean…anything.” The whisper of his last word sent this little shiver down your spine as you looked into his green eyes seductively smiling at you.

“Loki I…” You looked at him as you took his hand in yours, “I know what you mean. And your invitation is quite tempting but,” you moved closer to him, moving his single rebellious onyx strand behind his ear, “I wouldn’t want you to do anything you’re not sure about yourself.” You reflected the similar whisper in your words, but with more concern and less seduction, taking the God of Mischief by utter surprise while Scott stood behind the wall next to you gasping and wide-eyed, smushing the marshmallows in his mouth.

**Loki** : _*brooding until he becomes aware of the camera*_

_*whispers* why in Hel am I still here? *leaves the room*_

**Scott** : _HAH! I told you! *starts singing* Sexy love doo-doo-doo_

You made sure you were able to catch Thor alone in the evening when he was back from his local kingdom.

“I apologise on behalf of my brother, Y/N. Is there some way you’d like to punish him?”

You had not even spoken a word to the God of thunder and he was ready with an apology and a method to punish his brother’s unspoken crimes.

“Uhh…no. No. I just wanted to ask you if today’s something special. Some sort of special occasion or anniversary of some event.”

**Y/N** : _I figured that the person trying to get under my skin today is practically the same person who had quite a controversial but considerable contribution in bringing down the worst villain of the universe. So, either he’s diluted his IQ or he was trying to distract himself from something today. *shrugs*_

“Why yes,” Thor responded to your question with a sparkle in his eye, “it _is_ a special occasion today.”

An hour later, you, Thor and Scott were at Loki’s door, knocking. Loki took his sweet time to open up, only to look at the three of you with questioning eyes before turning his gaze to the cupcake you held in your hand.

A string of 'happy-birthday-Loki’s surrounded him making him scrunch his nose in disgust. “What is this madness?”

“This,” you began as you took his hand in yours to place the cupcake dish in his palm, “is a small treat from us.”

You couldn’t help but smile as he looked at the dessert with questioning eyes, suspicious of what was inside it.

“It’s a molten chocolate cake,” Scott gushed, pointing at his own share half consumed already, “it’s amazing. Y/N made these. Eat it while it’s hot.”

Scott went away for his second helping. “Don’t push yourself too hard, my prince,” you asserted to the God reading you with apprehensive eyes, “I am very easy to break.”

Loki watched you go down the corridor, his eyes never leaving you till you disappeared at the turn to the lounge and kitchen.

He looked back at his brothers standing tall in the hallway smiling at him.

“So, what would you li-”

“Did you tell her?”

“…Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because she specifically asked about it.”

“And did you apologise on my behalf considering whatever punishment deemed necessary?”

“… Yes but I-”

The door was shut in Thor’s face.

“I deserve that,” Thor whispered to himself as he walked away.

**Loki** : _*eating the molten chocolate cake* Why would you do this to a desert? It’s disgusting *taking another bite and turns to the camera* I’ve had ten, why?_


	3. Episode 3: Is That A Ship I See?

“Morning Loki!”  
Your enthusiastic voice made him groan as he picked up his- which was really yours- mug of tea from the counter.  
“Still feel like getting under my skin today?” You questioned as you made pancakes with Bucky.

 **Y/N** : _I must confess when I first saw Buck-James…Mr Barnes, for you, I never thought this guy would be so good at cooking. His hands work like magic. I mean, look at those huge but soft hands! They can stimulate anything they come in contact with. *pauses* Wait that came out wrong. Oh, shi- redact that comment *shaking head vigorously* Anyways!  *excitement shining through your eyes* He must be really famous among the ladies because of his skills. Right? *pauses and looks into the void*  
*whispers to herself* Did that come out wrong too?_

 **Bucky** : _The only ladies I know right now are Romanoff, Maximoff, Sam and Y/N. Sam and Y/N might the least fierce of them all._

 **Sam** : _*looks into the camera for good five seconds with his resting bitch face before a smirk arrives on his lips* I agree with Buck-Buck on this. I’m really not as fierce as them. Definitely not in volume of the amount of stress this poor man puts himself under to just to make me feel so good about myself. *smirk turns devilish*_

Loki’s brows raised themselves with pure amusement at your words. “Don’t give yourself so much importance in my life, darling. You do not hold much ground in my passing thoughts except for sheer entertainment at your expense.” Your lips found a smile hovering over them. “I’ll file that under, not in the mood today, darling.” Loki exhaled to show his annoyance as he sipped his tea. “Are you not supposed to be studying?”  
Your smile faded away as the reality of college hit you. “I’m starting the day after tomorrow. Which reminds me I’d better organise my first day according to the planner.” You thanked Bucky for the pancakes and were headed for your room when Peter entered the lounge.  
“Oh, hey! Y/N. Hi, it’s me, Peter. Peter Parker. We met a few days ago.”  
You couldn’t help but smile at the innocent excitement in his eyes that looking around you for something as he greeted you.  
“Yes, Peter. I remember you. Zuko is in my room. Napping. Would you like to see him?”  
Peter’s eyes lit up like fireworks on the little pupper’s name. He nodded enthusiastically as he followed you to your room. The camera shifted back to Loki, who was watching the two of you strut away with keen eyes.  
“I wrote an essay for the college. Yeah. Same as yours. Do you think you could give it a once over before I submit it? Ned and MJ helped me but I could really use your opinion too, since you, you know, have some experience already.”  
“Of course!” You exclaimed, “I was about to go to the library upstairs. Would you like to join me there?”

 **Peter** : _Yeah, it feels a bit weird that a normal human like Y/N is living here in the Avengers facility but then Ned told me I was not, so… that’s cool. *nods* Really cool. Mr Stark did ask me to join him but I declined as I was better off fighting in the streets. *shrugs* No big deal. *forces a laugh* I mean all she’s doing here is sitting in the study while she could be working with Dr Banner on his latest project._

 **Bruce** : _Oh, she is. She asked me if she could shadow me in order to study the research of telekinetic abilities of a normal human brain and I said yes. I mean why not?_

 **Peter** : _He said yes? *caught off guard* Huh._

**Meanwhile in the lounge**

The elevator doors opened, making way for Tony and Pepper to enter the area. Sam and Scott had just come back from a training session and were still bickering about who won.  
“Okay, Beatles! Take a break. Where’s Y/N?”  
Loki scoffed from the sofa he’d spread himself over while devouring a copy of Earth’s edition of the Norse mythology. “For a normal human being, Y/N is quite in demand, I must say.”  
Pepper stood in the middle of the room with eyes of judgment for Loki.  
“Congratulations, Miss Pots, on the little one by the way.” Loki looked up from the pages and smiled lightly. Both Tony and Pepper tried to decipher any hidden meaning behind the emotion that reached his eyes. Giving up, Pepper thanked him and turned to Tony to ask about you, something Loki could clearly make out from where he sat.  
“Oh, hi Miss Pots!” You exclaimed on seeing the woman as you exited the elevator. “Congratulations! On the wedding date and the baby!”  
Pepper looked at you once. “Is this…” She asked under her breath. “Yes,” Tony responded as discreetly as possible, smiling in exchange for your greetings.  
“Hi. How are you?”  
“I’m good, Miss Potts. I’m helping Peter with his essay. Should I get you something?”  
“Oh! No, honey. I’m good, thanks. And please call me Pepper. I just came by to make sure you were doing okay here.”

 **Pepper:** _Of course, I’m worried about her. Look around you. Tony made this place for very specific people with a very specific skill set and Y/N does not come anywhere close to that.  
*camera pans out to reveal Tony sitting beside Pepper*_  
 **Tony** : _All the more reason for her to feel safe here._  
*Pepper sighs and looks at the camera*

Pepper and Tony lock themselves in the study upstairs as the camera stands outside, recording the conversation going on through the window.  
“So, what do you think?” Tony’s heard saying. “She’s a sweet kid, Tony. But are you really sure she should stay here?”  
Tony drops his head back a little. “Babe, we talked about this. Where else could I possibly send her?”  
“I don’t know, the college dorms for starters. A fraternity.” Pepper crossed her arms over her chest.  
“What? No! There are idiot frat boys on campus. And fraternities just look good in movies. And did I mention the horny frat boys? Have you not learned anything from my past?”  
“Tony. You know that’s not what I’m talking about.”  
Tony played with the edge of the table for a moment before looking back at Pepper.  
“She’s safer here, you know it.”  
Pepper stood there looking at her future husband for a moment before she moved her hand behind Tony’s neck, caressing his hair.  
“When are you going to tell her?”  
Tony sighed.  
“I don’t know. I don’t want to…let’s just give her some time to adjust here.”  
Pepper looked at him with knowing eyes before hugging him. “You will have to tell eventually, Tony.”  
The camera panned out of the study’s view and moved into the hallway, bumping into a tall figure.  
Loki.  
He simply put a finger on his lips to warn it to not make any noise.

 **Loki** : _Just when I thought the Midgardian lameness would not end, I chanced upon such a wild news to tell our darling human.  
*signature smile*_

Peter sat in the library adding final touches to his essay as Loki walked in. “Hey, Mr Loki. How’s life?” He asked nonchalantly with a nod.  
“Boring. Mundane. Ridiculously monotonous,” the God answered without a moment of hesitation.  
“Okay, easy there, thesaurus,” Peter commented sitting back in his chair, studying the tall trickster looking down at him with evaluating eyes,[](https://artemxmendacium.tumblr.com/post/173783396735/scenes-i-need)“Mr Stark tells me you’re a bad guy.”  
Loki smirked at the young avenger.  
“It varies from moment to moment.”  
Peter looked away into oblivion, thinking about something.  
“So like…on a scale of one to ten, ten being the worst imaginable, like…killing Zuko, and one being I’ll spit on your hotdog…where are you right now?”  
Loki thought for a moment. “…maybe a three?”  
“Cool,” Peter scribbled something down on a piece of paper and handed it to Loki, “let me know if it gets above six.”  
Loki looked at the paper marked with digits. “That’s my phone number. You can call me anytime.”

 **Loki** : _I like him. I like this little spider-ling. *gives his most genuine smile*_

“Thanks,” Loki eyed the paper before putting it in his pocket. “Is Y/N here?”  
Peter nodded, “she’s in the history section down the right corner. She went to look for a book on some old psychologist an hour ago and she hasn’t come back since.”  
Without another word, Loki went down the corner of the bookshelves, leaving the camera to stay behind with Peter, who kept looking at Loki’s figure till it disappeared from the sight. Just as he did, Peter gestured the camera to follow him as got up from the chair without a sound and jumped to stick on the ceiling and crawl to the left- opposite of where he’d sent Loki. Gesturing the camera again, he moved around the bookshelves to reveal another section at the back, completely styled in wood with a round coffee table at the centre and comfortable sofa setting around it against the wall in royal blue tones. The camera was placed between two shelves at a safe distance from the parties being recorded.  
You stood there at one end of the nearby bookshelf, looking down at the copy of some old tattered heavy bundle of pages. You didn’t even hear Loki come in as he stood behind you, calling out your name.  
“Y/N,” he called the second time, making you jump.  
The light reflected the tears into the camera as you turned to look at Loki, whose expression changed a bit as he saw the wetness making your eyes red.  
“Hey,” your voice was nearly inaudible as you smiled through your tears, placing the back of your hand on your forehead to move away the mess that was your hair, “I was looking for something when I saw this in one of the bookshelves.”  
You moved towards Loki, who’s body stiffened where stood as he sensed you approach him. “I had this book when I was ten. I loved reading these absurd tales from different folklores. They were the best things I’d ever read, even though they have a lot of gruesome deaths, probably not suitable for a ten-year-old,” you forced out a laugh as you flipped the pages to show your audience. “Look, this one is about a maiden who fell into the ocean and was captured by a God and kept his prisoner, never allowing her to go back to her family. God, how much I wish my copy was still here and not burned to ashes.”  
Loki kept looking at your face that was buried deep within the pages in front of you. His eyes studying the emotions pouring out from the corners.  
“He burned my copy,” you whispered to yourself, grazing your fingers over the drawing of the maiden sitting inside a seashell, “I didn’t follow his orders and he was really pissed so he burned it because that was pretty much the only thing I used to treasure back then.”  
A forgotten sorrow passed over your face quite visibly before you tucked it back where it came from, wiping your tears away and finally looking at Loki. The God of Mischief stood beside you, still observing what was unfolding in front of his eyes.   
Suddenly you came out of a trance.  
“Umm…I’m sorry about that. I know you didn’t come here to hear me whine about some…book.”  
You took one long breath to bring your senses back to reality and averted your gaze from Loki. “I’ll leave you with…whatever it is you came here for,” you muttered and turned to put the book back on the shelf.  
Breaking away from it, you moved towards the entrance to the section when Loki spoke, “That maiden was no ordinary one,” making you stop in your tracks.  
“She had the face of an angel and the voice of a harp. There was a reason the God captured her and there was a reason he let her go.”  
You turned around to face him. “It is a true story from one of the nine realms. Only more brutal than what this one talks about,” he announced as he took out the book you had so carefully kept back, opened it up and sat down on the sofa before looking back at you.  
“Not really the collection of stories for the weak of heart.”  
You felt your chest shiver a little. Taking a deep breath, you moved towards Loki, planting yourself beside him, not too close and not too far- just at an adequate distance.  
The camera caught Loki narrating the events that took place in reality with a beautiful intensity. It also caught you smiling at him when he wasn’t looking. It even caught Peter planted over the top of a bookshelf grinning like a goofball as he took a picture of the two of you and sent it with the caption ‘Do I hear fireworks?’

 **Peter** : _*wide-eyed* Did you see that?! You think Mr Loki simmered down to a zero? I think he did. I think he definitely did. I ship this. One hundred per cent. *points to his side*_  
 _*camera pans out to reveal the photograph Peter had taken, on Scott’s phone.*_  
 **Scott** : _*turns the phone screen to himself* Look at these two goofballs. They don’t even know they’re so going to fall for each other. *chuckles*  
*Peter and Scott fist-bump each other*_

 **Two hours later**  
Clint is scanning the security camera footage around the house- before the arrival of security personnel hired for the facility tomorrow- when his eyes catch something unusual.  
Within moments he has his bow and arrow ready as he makes his way to the third storey of the east wing. Pushing past the library doors he readies his arrow as he crosses over to the private section.  
“Get away from her!” He shouts at Loki, who has a book in his hands while your head rests on the sofa right next to him- inches away from his shoulders.  
“Now!” His voice grows louder, making you wake up from your sudden nap with a jolt.   
“What? Where is she?!” You blurt out words.  
It takes a moment for you to register the scene around you. Clint has his arrow aimed at Loki, who is raising his hands in utter defeat as he looks at Hawkeye. “Good job, Barton. You woke her up.”  
“What’s going on?” You ask Clint, who looks at you with concern. “Are you alright, Y/N.”  
“I was, yes. Not anymore.” You announce with such poison in your voice, moving your hands to your hands to your throbbing head. “I told you not to shout when I’m sleeping. My head.”  
Clint still doesn’t lower his arrow. You look up at him and groan, getting up to move it away from Loki’s face.  
“Loki was telling me folklore of the universe and I fell asleep listening to him. Seriously, Clint, there is nothing to worry about,” you begged, “If there ever is, you are the first person I’m coming to. I promise. Now come on, get some sleep. Let me get some sleep. 'Night Loki.”  
“Goodnight darling,” the sly devil smirked.

 **Clint** : _*looking at the camera in utter disbelief* What the *censored* just happened? What the *censored* was that?!_


	4. Episode 4: It was a ...day

“You’re going to college like that?”  
Scott’s voice stopped you midway, your already anxious heart pounding as you looked down at your apparel- blue trousers, black tank top and a grey shrug.

 **You** : _*exasperated* Oh come on! It was the simplest, most effortless look I could come up with. *pause* It took me three hours last night to come up with this._

“Why? What’s wrong? Is this too much? Is it the top? Wait it’s the shrug, right? Should I take a jacket? It’s just… I haven’t been to college in three years I’m not really sure what I’m supposed to do here.” You blabbered as your body followed Scott into the elevator, out of it, into the living room and then finally into the huge kitchen where Bucky was showing Peter how to cut onions without tearing up.  
“Relax!” Scott exclaimed as he opened the door to the fridge, carefully loosening the ‘Pancake Princess’ magnet from it and smoothly tossing it to make it stick to Bucky’s arm with a clink.

 **Bucky** : _*sighs* Scott has a really weird sense of humour *looks at the camera zooming in on the magnet still stuck to his metal arm* Umm… Peter likes it._

“When I said you’re going to college like that, I meant you’re not going to college without this,” Scott explained as he handed you a small brown box. You were confused for a moment until you opened it to find a collection of different local chocolates from your place.  
Your pounding heart was already melting. “Bless my taste buds! Scott! Thank you so much for this!”

 **Scott:** _See no matter how old you get, first days of anything will wreck your nerves. And Y/N is a sweet kid you deserve nothing but more sweetness. *smiles into the camera* Also I didn’t pay for any of this. Steve just told me to put it on Tony’s tab._

You hugged Scott tightly as you thanked him again. “You’ll do great today, little tiger!” He hugged you back. “And I hope you don’t mind that I ate all the nougat chocolates.”

* * *

“Hey, Y/N! Off to college? Should I drop you?” Pietro called from behind you. You were quite sure the walkway had been completely empty a minute ago.  
“Thanks, Maximoff but Mr Roger’s is going that way so I’m riding with him today.” You smiled.

 **Y/N** : _*sighs* I know. I know, okay? And I am really not in the place to date someone right now. Especially, someone, I’m living with under the same roof. And I really don’t want to lead him any further. He’s a really nice guy and he definitely deserves someone better._

 **Wanda** : _Oh, I know! I know that Y/N knows that Pietro has some sort of crush on her because of all the *points at her head and weaves a plasmic red string in her hand*._  
*smiles* I also know she won’t take any advantage of that situation. *looks at her nails* Pietro stole my tablet last night and returned it with a crack right in the middle.   
*turns back to the camera* I won’t tell him till he’s suffered enough. And he needs to suffer.

“Where’s Y/N?” A sleep-deprived Loki came into the kitchen, making Scott and Peter exchange some coded glance before looking into the camera together. “She’s left for college,” Scott responded. “She wasn’t looking so happy about it,” Peter added, pressing his lips hard to not give himself away.  
“Nah, Peter,” Scott took out an expensive packet of Chinese herbal tea and slid it over the marble slab towards Loki, “that’s just the first day jitters. The moment she’s going to enter the campus, everything will just fade into the distance.”  
Loki turned on the heat under the kettle, listening but showing no interest.  
“Oh, you mean like making new friends?” Peter added innocently.  
Scott gave him a thumbs up.  
“Yeah. Yeah. Maybe she even finds an interesting guy, or a girl, that she likes, you know, to date and stuff.”  
Peter took out the sugar and milk and put it over the counter before adding, “But won’t that be difficult on her? She could definitely not bring her date here. I mean,” he gestured to everything around him, “this does not exactly speak 'I want to Netflix and chill’ with you.”  
Loki turned to the cabinet and took out a mug which had 'Early bird gets the worm when the super late night-owl lets 'em have it’.  
“Whose is this?” He said as he scrutinized the white mug with his closed up brows.  
“Y/N.” Both the boys said in unison.  
Bucky looked at the mug and was about to point something out before Peter interrupted.  
“Hey, Mr Barnes sir, could you tell me how to kill the pasta, if it’s alright?”  
Bucky looks at Peter before turning to the camera. “…You mean how to boil it?”  
Loki took out a mug that had 'Title of your sex tape written over it’ and poured out the boiling water in it, generously pouring the tea leaves with a bit of sugar.  
“You’re absolutely right, Peter. I guess when she starts dating she’ll decide to move out from here and move it with her SO. Ain’t that right, Loki?”  
Loki took a sip of his burning tea as he looked into the camera.  
“It doesn’t really matter what I think. But yes, I can see why it would be sad for you. She’s already grown so close to you and Parker here. She took in that little dog you brought her that day. She even helped you make a card and arrange a gift for Cassie’s birthday. She even brought Cards Against Humanity to play with you boys.”  
“She did?”  
Both Scott and Peter for taken aback. Loki was sure they were nearly in tears.

 **Loki:** _*sipping his tea* They really should get a hobby. I mean it’s fun and all until someone gets hurt in their feelings. *camera pans to the mug*_

 **Meanwhile at college**  
You looked at the camera guy following you, making you conscious of multiple eyes around the campus who had nothing better to do.  
“Do you really need to come here? Can’t we do this back home?” You snapped.  
The camera stayed behind you, forcing you to sigh and walk a few steps before you spotted someone.  
“Oh shoot!” You cursed, running back and behind some bushes. The camera comes beside you to record a handsome young man in a white shirt and blue jeans passing by when he stopped as a student called out his name.

 **Y/N** : _That guy is David. He…*voice shivers* was someone I dated when I was a sophomore here. He was my senior. And now, he is going to be my assistant professor. *fake smile* …*faltered expression* …*censored curses*_

“All right, listen to me,” you order the camera guy, “if you’re going to do this, you’ll have to keep it on the down low. Okay? Just be as inconspicuous about this as possible. It’s not like you have a permission slip for-” you were interrupted as the camera guy handed you a slip.  
“Great.” Your expression turned dead. “Just great.”

“Y/N? Is that you?”  
You had tried to walk out after the lecture as soon as possible but failed. Miserably.  
“Hey, David.” You brought your hand forward for a shake while David tried to go for a hug, making him finally settle for the handshake.  
“Long time no see! How have you been?”  
You tried to smile and meet his eyes but couldn’t, the camera zoomed in at you from behind David making it even more difficult.  
“I’m back to complete my studies.”  
“Oh! I thought you had some financial problems the last time we talked about it.” David stated matter-of-factly.  
You scoffed. “ _We_ did not talk about anything.”  
“I found a sponsor.” You finally added.  
David smiled as he studied all of you; his eyes hovering over your eyes, hair, lips, neck and shoulders.  
“Good. That’s good. I’m happy for you.” He jested as he placed his hand over your shoulder, making your expression falter for a second as you tried to put distance between the two of you.  
“Let me know if you need anything, okay?”  
“Sure. I-uhh-I have to go.”  
You power walked out of the class.

 **Y/N** : _… *sunken into the chair, defeated* well, that was a disaster *bites into a small Toblerone._

“Hey! How was-”  
“No.”  
Pietro looked at you go up the elevator without another word, his expression hurt a little.  
Scott saw you come by the kitchenette in the lounge and looked at your expressions before moving one of the mugs towards you.  
“Hot chocolate,” is all that his soft face said.  
You slumped onto the island. “How did you know?”  
“You’re not that different from my daughter, you know.”  
You chuckled. “I’m sure she’s way cooler than me.”  
“Oh definitely. She’s cooler than all of us combined.”  
You smiled at him as he ruffled your hair.  
“Come on, sad baby. Get up and do something that makes you happy. You do not get to mope over some stupid day. What’s gone is gone and you do not have to do it again.”  
“Wise words, _sensei_!” You announced through your giggles.  
Scott bowed. “ _Arigatou gozaimasu_.”

“Is that what you’ll do all day, _every day_? Drink tea and wallow yourselves in books?”  
Loki looked up from whatever he was reading and smiled at you.  
“There’s nothing much interesting on this planet except for some decent works by some decent men and they are all in resting in pages.”  
You nodded as you looked at his side of the table filled with half a dozen books of different bindings.  
“I agree with you on that today, buddy.”  
You clunk your mug with his and let an involuntary laugh escape your lips.  
“What?” Loki asked as he gave you a questioning look.  
You sat down opposite him, bringing forward a comic book, “Seems like you’ve christened my new mug as well.”

 **Scott** : _Hmmm. I wonder who could really use a new hobby. *sips from the mug titled crazy detective slash genius*_

“Here, try these.” You put the chocolate box between the two of you and took one out for yourself. “Words are great but chocolate is better. Unless you’re allergic to cocoa or nuts.”  
Loki took one and bit into it while you watched his expressions change with much content. “This is…not disgusting.”  
“Yes,” you laughed, “ _definitely_ not disgusting.”

 **Y/N** : _Hmm. Today was…*a slight smile appears on your lips* not that bad._

 **Loki** : _*eating the chocolate* Ugh. This is what my thought would taste like when I’m wishing someone would kill me before I have to ever bear another second with snobby Midgardians. *takes a bite of another chocolate and moans involuntarily* this is what it felt like when I learned to do magic *continues eating*  
*pauses deep in thought* What’s a buddy? A friend? *laughs* She is..what’s the expression…one hot mess  *sips hot chocolate from the same mug he christened today*_


	5. Episode 5: Aesthetic

“Alright then,” David brought his hands together, leading to a loud clap, “who can tell me the difference between sensation and perception?”  
You were too drawn into a doodle you were making to have noticed the camera catching his eyes frozen on you. “Y/N?”  
You jumped. “Yes?”  
“Mind answering my question?”  
The girl sitting next to you tapped her pen on her notebook twice, directing your gaze at David’s question she wrote down for you. You got up, allowing the camera to steal a glance at a little chibi version of a long, dark-haired individual with puffy cheeks and cute angry brows. A bubble over his head said ’ _disgusting!_ ’ while his arms crossed over his chest.

Your explanation on the two terms went quite smooth and easy for everyone to understand. Just when you finished it, David raised his finger. “Well, actually-”

 **You** : _He pretty much went ahead and said the same things but with terms that we won’t be learning till the next semester. *sigh*_

A brunette boy sitting in front of you pointed out the obvious. “Isn’t that what she just said, Mr Drunn?”  
David looked at the boy with an expression you were quite familiar with.

 **You** : _There’s this thing he does where he will have just a teensy bit of a smile on his face but his eyes will be screaming ‘I’ll murder you if you said another word’. Kudos if you get that one from him because it’s a sure way of telling that you hurt his ego. *smiles and nods with satisfaction*_

The lecture was over within seconds and you were thanking the girl next to you for helping you out when David called out your name and asked you to stay behind, oblivious to the judgmental glares he got from the last five students that just left through the door.  
“Everything alright Mr Drunn?” You asked, masking your annoyance with seriousness.  
“Is he supposed to follow you everywhere?” You turned to look at the camera, a little relieved at the fact that you were never really going to be alone with David, thankfully.  
“Yes. He is. Sponsor’s word. Can’t really do anything about it. So, what’s is it?”  
David looked between the two of you before finally finding the words. “I was thinking we could go out for coffee so that we could talk about your progress on-”  
You jumped the second time today as your phone vibrated.  
“Wait. I have to take this. Hello?” You moved away from him and towards the wall near the exit. “Yeah, no, I’m not home right now but I’ll ask Wanda to look for it. Or Friday, yes, of course.” You turned around to look at David, the phone still on your ear, evaluating what was going to happen as soon as you cut the call, before turning back and whispering into your phone. “Hey! Pepper, if it’s okay with you, can I come over to wherever you are right now? Please?”  
There was a slight pause before your pleading features popped up with excitement all over. “Okay cool. I’ll be there in five.”  
Without as much as a glance in David’s direction, you announced, “Sorry, I have to go. Uhh-family emergency. See ya next lecture,” as you picked up your belongings and dashed out of the room, the camera catching the dissatisfaction on David’s face before it exited the room as well.

**Meanwhile at the compound**

“Mind if I join?”  
All the sweaty, breathless faces turned towards Loki’s languid figure at the entrance of the training hall, bringing all the activities to a halt.  
Clint dropped the punchbag from his grip with a thud. “We practice battles here, your greasiness, not tricks,” he acknowledged with a little bow.  
“Is that what you tell Miss Maximoff as well?” Came the speedy reply.  
Wanda’s breathless figure looked at Loki and then at Clint before turning to the camera and shaking her head in confusion.

 **Loki:** _What? I am bored as it is. Fighting is not really my strong suit but strategy and mischief are weapons of war no matter which battle you pick up in any history book. *smug face of satisfaction*_

“I don’t think-” Steve’s determined speech was cut short by Bruce’s voice over the intercom.  
“Steve, I’d suggest that you take the invitation.”  
Steve looked up at Banner’s figure with a wave of exasperation, as the scientist stood behind the thick glass in the room filled with screens displaying every person’s vitals who was present in the training room.  
“You really think so, doc?” The camera present beside Bruce turned to Tony’s figure entering the room slurping his detox juice.  
Bruce turned off the intercom as he looked at Tony. “Think about it, Tony. This man singlehandedly got us together in New York, that too while he was under Thanos’ influence. He has the foresight and is a remarkable strategist. If we work together, we will not only gain a plethora of information about the things he’s seen out there but he might actually make future battles a bit easier for us. A symbiotic relationship if you will.”

 **Tony** : _I would have really loved the sound of that had I not met Eddie and his greasy pal Venom last week when I was in New York. *slurps his juice* There’s a reason I don’t want Peter going to college anywhere within a two hundred mile radius of those two weirdos._

Tony stood there for a moment, calculating the damage that could happen. “How can we be sure he won’t sell us out? Or his mood changes? How can we know for sure?”  
Bruce smiled. “He could have gone anywhere but he’s really stuck here with us directly or indirectly because of Thor. And I know that you’ve noticed it too that he’s been getting along decently with Scott, Peter and Y/N, though he openly discourages the former for his…dumb tricks now and then.”  
“That’s good, thank God. At least someone has the heart- or lack thereof- to shut Scott down,” Tony spoke with relief in his voice. “Alright,” he said before turning on the intercom, “Give it a swing, Rogers. Let’s see what this trickster’s got up his sleeve.”

**In a boutique in the suburbs, a five-minute drive from Y/N’s campus.**

You gasped just as you entered the room where Pepper stood with a glass of orange juice in her hands. “Holy heavens! Pepper!”  
Pepper turned around to reveal the front of her lace wedding dress gracing her front and back with flowers woven in white threads. She smiled as she saw you come in with your hands clasping your mouth.  
“You look…you look…oh God I can’t find the right words!”

**You:** _Like the Goddess herself gracing us with her presence in her most powerful form. That’s how she looked in that dress. *beams* *tears forming in your eyes* Mr Stark is going to cry on their wedding day. *winces through her tears, drinking the glass of mimosa in her hand* For sure._

“Thank you so much, hon,” Pepper said as she gave you one quick hug. “Everything alright in college? You sounded like you wanted to get out of there really fast.”  
Your face turned a little red as you quickly took the mimosa from the service lady once Pepper gave you a green light.  
“One of the assistant professors is the guy I used to date when we were sophomores.”   
Pepper’s arm came for your back, making soothing strokes. “Oh! I hope he’s not-”  
“It’s good, really. Nothing I can’t handle.”  
“What’s his name?”  
You took another glass from the plate the lady had left on the table and gulped down the entire thing as Pepper looked on with slight horror before turning to the camera

 **Pepper** : _I don’t like this David guy. At all. And I’ve been around Tony enough to know when someone’s not telling me the whole picture, thinking not to bother me, making it way more stressful for me personally. *pauses as she drinks her orange juice* *looks down at her glass before she puts up an artificial smile on her face* And the fact that I can’t have hard drinks is really NOT helping!_

 **In the T.R.**  
Steve, Pietro, Natasha and Wanda took the corners of the artificial play field created in the middle of the room while Scott, Bucky, Clint, Sam and Rhodey covered the outside, waiting to be tagged in or take down the God if he moved outside the mark they’d set for their own comfort.  
All Loki had taken from the weaponry was a staff. “Ready when you are, humans,” he announced, standing still with the staff resting in his hand behind him.  
Within a flash Pietro dashed towards the God, letting Steve and Wanda break out into a 'Pietro No!’ but they were too late. One moment they screamed and the next they saw the twelve minutes older Maximoff driving himself straight into the room’s wall, groaning as the impact surged through his body.  
Loki stood right where everyone saw him thirty seconds ago, looking down at the boy with much sympathy.

 **Loki** : _Clearly not the one to use his brain as much as his speed. No wonder he died just when The Avengers found him._

Clint readied his bow from the platform where he was perched up while Wanda gathered her power in her hands to take control of Loki’s body while Steve threw his shield towards him. Everything moved slowly for the God as he grabbed Clint’s arrows aiming for his neck, teleported behind the captain to stab those very arrows in the back of his thighs- making him grunt in pain- teleporting again but this time behind Wanda to- who looked perplexed at the multiple vanishing and reappearing figures of Loki, trying hard to find out which one was real.  
“Hi.” Loki cooed in her ear, making her jump before grabbing her head and instantly manipulating her to sleep.

 **Back at Boutique**  
“No, I think that’s a brilliant idea. The program would definitely help people who have been affected with any mental health problems at any point in their life. But I’d also suggest that if you’re thinking of including the younger lot, like teenagers or kids younger than them, positive awareness drives and mandatory activities would be a great start in educational institutions under the Stark umbrella. Eventually, you can branch out of that to other school and college campuses as well.”  
Pepper looked at you talk with such interest, all the while smiling as you encouraged her idea that was in the planning phase right now.  
“Honestly, Pepper, you are doing an amazing job. Stark Industries is very lucky to have you.”  
She raised her glass to you, clinking and drinking away the happiness building up inside her. “What is it that you’d like to do, Y/N? Do you have any plans?”  
Pepper caught you off guard for a moment as your head swerved with the question as well as the alcohol working its way into your blood. You shrugged your shoulders as your fingers played with the rim of the empty glass in your hands.  
“I don’t know,” you forced out a laugh before adding in a whisper, “I just want to fix the broken as best as I can.”

 **Pepper** : _*looks into a distant void as she sighs, her eyes glittering with wetness* *shakes her head as a thought crosses her mind* mm mmm *drinks the juice and gets up and leaves the lone chair of the boutique’s makeshift recording room*_

 **The Training Room**  
Loki dodged the laser, reflected the knives thrown his way and spun on the weight of the staff to land a kick on Scott’s (not so calculated move of turning back to his) original size.

 **Scott** : _*treating his cuts bruises with ice packs* He freaking did a three-sixty with that stick! What was he, a stripper on Asgard? *confused and enraged* He was amazing! There’s definitely some repeated practice in that I can tell you that. *frustration intensifies* How do I know? Because I tried doing it and you can guess how it ended!  
_

Ultimately Tony struck the gong he kept in the room for the very purpose of breaking heated fights. “Alright, we’re done! That’s it for today. Go clean up, guys. It smells like a sweat-fest in here. Awh! God!”  
A couple of curse words and low grunts later the room just had Tony, Loki, Rhodey and Bruce left behind.  
Tony looked at Loki with questioning eyes. “Entertaining enough for you?”  
Loki smirked his best one.  
“I must congratulate you, Stark. Your little…boyband…improves by the second.”  
And just as uttered the words, a ripple of green and gold flowed over his body to reveal the cuts and injuries the Avengers fighting him had marked him with. Needless to say, Rhodey and Bruce took a step closer to confirm what they were seeing. Though the wounds were healing fast, they were hard to miss.  
Tony stood there, unphased, a glint of admiration striking somewhere in the corner of his eyes.  
“But there’s always room for improvement, isn’t there?” Stark pointed out with a smirk.

 **One hour later**  
Loki walked out of the training wing after having washed himself up. He was on his way back to the lounge when he saw the camera panned at him. His pace slowed as he heard Tony’s voice come out of his office cum study. He silently made his way towards Tony’s voice.  
“Alright. I’ll take care of it. Yes, I’ll take care of everything. Matthew, please don’t talk to Y/N directly about this. She has no idea and I’d like to keep it that way for the time being. Yes, I have the papers with me. They were delivered this morning.”  
Loki heard him open a drawer and shove something inside before closing it.  
“Yes, please. Thank you, my wonderful lawyer friend.”  
Right before the camera, Loki disappeared into thin air as Tony came out of his study. He looked at the camera guy who stood at a considerable distance from him.  
“What are you doing here? The party’s in the lounge,” Tony announced as he moved in that direction, tapping away on his phone.  
Just as he disappeared out of the view, Loki’s form came back into existence just like it had disappeared and effortlessly glided inside the study. The camera came up closer to watch from outside what the God of Mischief was up to. Loki opened the drawer of the table, took out an unnamed manila file and opened it. His normally sassy brows turned around with mild surprise as he looked up at the camera before turning back to the file, flipping through the pages as an involuntary mocked laugh escaped his lungs before his brows furrowed with some unspoken worry.

 **Loki:** _I’m sorry, I don’t know what file you are talking about. Hmm? What’s that? Recording? You mean you recorded Tony Stark’s personal business…without his permission? *sits back into the chair, hands clasped as a sign of case closed*_

The elevator dinged open as you walked into the lounge with your notebook and a shopping bag in your hand and your other bag resting on your back.  
“You’re late, young lady,” Sam announced as he pointed at his watch.  
“Missed me so much?” You threw back at him. “Nah! I just wanted to watch your expression when Scott tells you-”  
“Loki spun like a professional pole dancer on a staff today in training!!!” Scott shouted from the end of the dorm as soon as he saw you.  
“That.” Sam finished his sentence as he plopped down into the sofa, done for the day.  
“You missed it. You should have seen this guy’s moves!”  
Your eyes went wide as you looked at Loki, who was busy preparing some tea, as usual, for himself- clearly done for the day himself.  
“Really? Can you teach me some?”  
Loki and Scott gave you the same perplexed look. “Why?” They questioned you in unison.  
Your tiredness and alcohol added to the already built up exhaustion as you rubbed your eyes. “Oh, you know. Just in case I don’t make it through college this time I could at least have one craft up my sleeve. I’d make a decent str-”  
Scott clasped your mouth with his hand.   
“A decent what?” Loki was genuinely curious to know what you were about to say.  
“Alright, kid. You need to go easy on yourself. It’s just starting, okay? I can also smell some alcohol on you so I’m going to go ahead and assume it has some part to play as well. So my suggestion is that you go freshen up and eat something. We’ve ordered pizza.”  
He left you and Loki at the kitchen island as he heard Sam and Bucky have a stare off on who’s turn was it get the remote.  
“Oh, before I forget,” you mentioned as you picked up the tiny shopping bag from the floor, “I got you something. Well, actually, I saw this and thought 'hey, you know who’d like this? Loki, probably’. Here.”  
You took out two plastic boxes and placed it in front of him.  
Loki took a moment to evaluate what was going on before taking one of the boxes and opening it.  
“This is…”  
“A keychain. With a tiny chocolate cupcake. Remind you of something?” You chuckled and Loki groaned at the thought of the molten cupcakes you’d made him on his birthday. “What is the purpose of this? I don’t even have keys.”  
“Well, not with that attitude, you won’t. Ever. Now go ahead and open the other one.”  
He went for the other box and out came a sturdy ring that had a tiny snake sitting on the top, coiled up together, two tiny emeralds for eyes.  
He turned to you with distaste marking his face. “Is this some sort of mockery?”  
You looked at him with your resting face. “No, you dolt. Here,” you wrapped your hands around his- never catching the green eyes gazing at you in a deep observation that the camera recorded- and kept the ring steady with one hand while opened it up with another.  
“It’s an old one. People, spies I guess, used to keep poison pellets in here, just in case things went downhill. I figured you could keep skittles in here.”  
“The little round sweet pellets that Scott hides around the house?”  
“Yes,” you responded in all seriousness.  
“Why?”  
You just shrugged your shoulders as you formed the answer right then.  
“Snacks. And aesthetic.”  
And without a warning you took Loki’s tea and sipped the hot beverage to calm down your nerves, making Loki twitch his jaw at your action.

 **Loki:** _What am I, a piece of entertainment? A mission for this woman? First, she has the audacity to appear nice to me. Now, she showers me with gifts. Of course, she is planning something big. And oh I have something that is going to shake her beyond whatever malice she is planning out for me. You have my word._

 **You:** _Oh, I bought the keychain just to tease him. *chuckles* The ring really was for aesthetic. *eats pizza* *camera zoomed in onto your face as you stare at something in the distance* I still think I’d make a pretty decent stripper though.  
*Scott shouts a stern 'Y/N’ in his adult grandma voice from outside the door* Sorry, I’m just tired! *you shout back apologetically*_


	6. Episode 6: Fluffy Pokemon

**Clint:** _*already sinking into the seat* *grumbling* I don’t like chores. But Nat has put me in charge of getting stuff and samples over to the compound, you know, for Pepperoni’s wedding. Isn’t that supposed to be the planner’s job?_  
  
 **Nat:** _*serious tone* the planner is an idiot. He didn’t plan for a backup for all the seventy-six possibilities of a breach or an attack at the wedding. So, I’ve taken over. Fifty-six per cent of the preparations are done. The rest is on my shoulders. *smirks* And everyone’s helping.  
_  
 **Clint:** _*his head resting on his knuckles* Of course, we’ll help Nat. It’s either that or be killed. I’d rather die, *camera zooms in on his face* but death by Nat is not what you should wish for. *zooms in further* Ever._

  
“Are you sure you can spare some time, Y/N?” Nat questioned you as you took the binders from her grasp and place them on the table. The entire conference room was bustling with the Avengers as they gathered around the table ready to bring their A game. Well, everyone except one person, and the groom, of course.  
“Yeah, absolutely! I’m already done with my assignments and there isn’t much going on this week in college. So let me help whatever way I can.”  
  
 **You:** _I lied. *camera zooms in* I’m lying to probably…no, definitely, the most beautiful assassin on earth. I was given a last minute assignment by David to be put on his desk by Monday morning despite me specifically telling him that I have a wedding to attend on Saturday. It’s like he is trying to make me suffer on purpose. And now I’m stressed. When I’m stressed my mind overheats and becomes anxious. I start doing things I don’t usually do._  
  
A camera shows an early morning footage of you walking around the compound track with earphones in as a confused Steve, Sam and Bucky jog by.  
Steve is breathless, standing at the end of the track, looking in your direction with deep concern. “This is her fiftieth round. Is she all right? Does-does she know she’s walking?”  
Sam, who is practically wheezing beside Steve, supporting his hands on his knees, responds, “Do you think she’s sleepwalking? Oh-oh my God. If she keeps up like that she might power walk her way beyond your record Cap.”  
  
 _And then if anxiety overheats my brain to a point of no return, all of my systems shut down. I no longer care about any deadlines. I no longer care about anything. What I do, what I say, doesn’t have a filter._  
  
The camera shows another footage of you spread across the sofa with Zuko lying on your stomach eyeing Bucky as he enters the lounge after his workout while Scott is reading the Percy Jackson series on the sofa next to you.  
“Damn Sarge!” You hoot across the room at the man, “looking tight!” nearly making him choke on his water while Scott looks at you with pure bewilderment in his eyes.  
  
 _It’s like watching yourself look at the whole scene from the back seat while this mischievous part of your brain at the wheel has good music set up for you as it takes you on the wildest ride, disobeying all the traffic rules, running all red lights, not wearing a seat belt and when the traffic cams do take a picture, it’s you smiling from the back seat that is frozen in the frame. Nothing else. *exhales*_  
  
“So give me all you got, Romanoff” you announced, drumming your fingers on the table, receiving mixed glares from everyone around you.  
“Okay,” Natasha, already loving your enthusiasm, distributed the binders with the names of the people they were being assigned to, “the tasks have been divided. Priorities have been colour coded. The fun-loving, unique and friendly-for-lives aka _fluffy_ part of the wedding will be carried out from 1000 hours to 1300 hours while the stealth strategy planning will take place between 1400 hours to 1700 hours.” Natasha articulated.  
“What? No nicknames for our stealth operation?” Sam chimed in.  
“That’s what you all are here for,” the Black widow stated.  
  
 **Natasha:** _I did have a nickname. It was ‘process of keeping enemies at maximum orbit no-matter-what’. *dramatic pause* aka Pokemon. But then I found out some very *inhales* interesting links when you googled the two codenames together so I dropped it. There are twelve-year-olds working on this project. The only adult is Y/N. I don’t what them distracted by a bunch of words smashed together while a perfect wedding is at stake here. *signature blank stare*_  
  
All this went on while Loki had been sitting quietly, looking at the ramblings going around him. The camera would focus on him as he would turn his gaze towards you now and then, watching you read the pages with quite the interest, constricting your brows or scrunching your nose now and then before your lips would turn into a smirk.  
  
 **Loki:** _Did you see that? She studies everything, goes into detail. She wants to plan out everything perfectly. I’m sure it’s not just the wedding she is thinking of right now.  
_  
“Steve and Wanda,” Nat straightened herself, signalling everyone to go quiet, “you are overlooking the tables. Your binders have information on all the guests. Wanda, draw up the details for Steve and he’ll be creating a safe radius of seats for the guests. Rhodey will affirm the arrangement as he is familiar with all the people. Bucky and Pietro, you are taking care of the reception stage, clock the intros and outros in the binder to the last second over the sound systems in June’s Interface.”  
“Won’t Friday be best for a job this precise?” Bucky raised a brow.  
“I would be Sargeant Barnes,” came the soothing voice throughout the room, “but my priorities have been set to the civilians’ safety measures along with overlooking the security of compound by Miss Romanoff. I apologise for the inconvenience but we would have to do with you right now.”  
  
 **Scott:** _If Friday were a person, she and Hope would’ve been best friends. A pair of sass and genius. *chuckles* My girl is the genius, just to be clear. *proud smile*_  
  
“Moving on, Clint and Scott will be taking all the samples Tony and Pepper selected and go over to the specified boutiques to bring over the bulk orders. Sam, you are tasting the menu today with me.”  
“Oh, yes! Best job ever.”  
“Loki and Y/N will be scrutinising the decorations around the house and in the compound. The arch is your number one priority.”  
“Cool!” You were already liking the idea of being surrounded by nothing but flowers and lights. Loki just exhaled.  
The camera focused on Clint throwing a mute 'what’ into the air. “Y/N is going with me. Scott can handle the flowers with Loki,” he announced.  
“What? Why?” Both you and Scott said in unison.  
“I want to do the arch,” you pleaded.  
  
 **Loki:** _See? She’s clearly planning something. She just wants to make sure we are alone when that happens. But you know what? *Takes out a Hello Kitty burner phone Scott gave him as a birthday present* I am not going to let that happen *calls a number* Hello *camera pans over Loki’s face* It’s a six._  
  
“I’m colour blind. Y/N can help me with the colours.” The meeting was over and everyone was trailing out of the room when Nat stood over Clint for the sole reason of disrupting her well thought out pairings.  
“No, you’re not.” Natasha quipped, crossing her arms over her chest.  
“So could I,” Scott mentions, clearly hurt.  
“She can use the outside air.”  
“She gets all the necessary air in college. What’s your point, Clint?” Nat was not having it.  
You could see the nerves in her neck pulsating visibly. “Okay, how about this. I’ll go with Clint, help him with the stuff and come back to help Loki overlook the decoration.”  
“I’m still going with them,” Scott pointed out.  
  
 **Scott:** _Not cool, Barton. You’re killing my ship here. I’ll be watching you like a hawk to make sure you don’t ruin it further. *points fingers at his eyes and then back at the camera, whispering* I’m watching you._  
  
 **Sam:** _*smiles* I was supposed to be sampling food. Have the time of my life savouring the best chefs from around the world. *smile turns to a death stare* Now I’m supposed to babysit Loki. Thanks a lot, Barton.  
_  
The camera installed on the dashboard of the car recorded Clint and you sitting in front while Scott and another camera guy went for the back. The camera guy hid behind your seat but not before his light brown sunny silky hair, soft tanned skin and blue eyes were caught in the dash-cam.  
“Seatbelts people,” Clint announced, impressed that yours was already locked in. Scott struggled with his in the back as the black SUV left the grounds.  
  
 **In the lounge**  
The elevator dinged to bring out Peter’s figure rushing into the hall with his backpack and a brown paper bag.  
“Hi, Mr Loki. Here,” he brought forward the paper bag for a curious Loki to take, “you said it was a six so I brought you the best sandwich in the city. Well, the best that my pocket money could afford.”  
Loki took the sandwich and smelled the delicacy, his brows showing a bit of satisfaction. “Thank you,” he stated with surprise, clearly taken aback by Peter’s actions.  
“Mr Wilson told me you’ve been assigned to overlook the decorators. He did not seem too happy about it, though.”  
“Yes,” Loki stated, biting into the sandwich, “Y/N and I were supposed to be doing that but Clint took her with him and Sam is now stuck with me instead eating whatever he can get his hands on.”  
  
 **Peter:** _*hurt* Not cool, Mr Barton! Not cool!_  
  
“Okay, so how can I help?”  
Loki looked at him with calculating eyes, chewing his sandwich all the while. “Are you sure Stark would let you accompany me around the compound? He clearly looks at you like you’re a fragile puppy he’d never let anyone touch.”  
Peter’s face turned red for a moment. “What? No. I’m not a puppy. Anyways, come on, let’s go outside and find out what we are supposed to look at while you tell me what’s going on.”  
  
 **Clint’s Car**  
“Hey Y/N?”  
“Hmm?”  
“How’re you finding living at the compound?”  
You took in one stretched breath to gather your thoughts.  
“Nice. Everyone’s a good housemate. I hope I am bearable too.” You gave a weak smile.  
Clint chuckled and nodded his head in satisfaction. “You’re good. Better than many of us.”  
“Got any favourites yet?”  
“Favourites?” You chuckled, “amongst you all? Naw. I can’t have favourites. All of you are awesome. But I do love Scott’s company because I finally have someone I can karaoke with.”  
You shifted in your seat to face Scott’s beaming face.  
“Yeah!” Scott high fived you from the back seat. “On for some 80s tonight?”  
“You’ll have to walk me through those. Let’s invite Peter and Loki as well!” You chimed in.  
Clint looked into the camera on the dash.  
“Y/N, I think you should maintain some distance from Loki.”  
The car suddenly went quiet.  
“Oh. Okay. But he’s been quite all right as far as I’ve seen him. He hasn’t done an-”  
“Oh, trust me. He has done enough in the past for me to tell you to stay away from him.”  
Your eyes carried a concern as you looked at Clint and then turned to Scott.  
“Is this because of the whole mind control thing, buddy? Because we know now it wasn’t-”  
“I don’t care. It’s better to safe than sorry.”  
Scott was about to say something when you raised your fingers just so only he could see you gesturing him to stay silent.  
“All right. Cool.-  
The next thirty seconds went by in complete silence as Scott threw daggers at Clint from behind.  
"Oh, before I forget. Hey Scott, can you accompany me to the local pet shop this weekend? Wanda and I are going there to help me look for a part-time job.”  
“Sure.”  
Clint looked in the rearview mirror before turning ever so slightly towards you. “If Wanda’s going, why do you need Scott?”  
You raised your brows and took in another long breath. “Oh, you know, just like I said, he’s a good company.”  
“And he’s safe,” you muttered under your breath, Clint’s eyes catching the flicker of your lips.  
  
 **Clint:** _*standing outside their first stop* She said he’s safe, right? You heard that, right? *pauses* She’s scared of Wanda. Why? Did she do something?  
_  
 **The back of the Avengers compound**  
“Someone is plotting against me and I need you to help me take the threat down.”  
Peter was confused for a second, stopping in his tracks. “By take down you mean…”  
Loki brought his hands behind his back, exhaling the utter judgment rolling in his mind for the spider-ling.  
“I am not going to kill anyone if that’s what you’re implying,” he responded, allowing Peter to release the caught up tension in his shoulders, “I am tired by the sight of blood as it is. In fact, I’m afraid my methods would be far too much for that being to bear. That’s why I need some human help. I know this person is out for some mischief at my cost. And I would like to get back at them in a similar way. You fit the setting of giving me advice because you are…soft.”  
Peter looked into the camera with utter disgust scrunching up his entire face.  
  
 **Peter:** _Soft? *grunting* Really? I’m freaking spider-man! Spider-man’s not soft. He’s scary. *pouting* Not soft._  
  
 **Inside the boutique**  
Scott is chatting up with Cassie on a video call, showing her the fancy napkins and the different styles in which they were folded while you tallied the order details in your binder and Clint sorted the boxes, unenthusiastically counting the numbers before getting them ready to be put into the car. Your phone rang and you pulled out the screen to see Wanda’s name lighting it up. Clint saw your fingers hesitate for a moment before you turned towards him. “Hey, can you see what Wanda’s calling about? I still have to tally the codes here and I don’t want to break the rhythm.”  
He was about to say something but you got up and took the papers with you to the other table, clearly raising his suspicions even more.  
  
 **On the freshly cut grass of the lawn**  
“If you want to beat them, you have to think like them. You have to become them.”  
Peter said in a grim tone, looking into the sun.  
“Shouldn’t have done that. My eyes hurt.” He winced and looked back at Loki, the latter not amused at the unfolding scene.  
“What I’m saying is you beat them at their own game. They are trying to prank you? You prank them first and you prank them hard. Don’t wait for the entire school to find out that they messed up your locker with silly strings instead go mess up the combination to their locker first.”  
Loki observed Peter’s face as he took in his words. “That…is quite specific.”  
“Uhh… No. I just… It was an example.” Peter’s ears went red, embarrassment flushing his face as he glanced at the camera behind them, not looking at the mess of fairy light dangling in front, catching his limbs in the plastic web.  
“So, I have to surprise Y/N to make her falter enough to never allow her to go through with her plan.” Loki was thinking out loud. “Is that what you mean?”  
Peter was trying to untangle himself from the mess, half-listening to the conversation. “Yup, that’s what you got to do. Ugh! Come on!”  
Loki turned around to see the spider-ling stuck in a web, entertained but not surprised, turning to the camera with a tired sigh.  
  
 **Stop no. 2: Abuela’s candle store**  
“Wow! Tony has great taste in this stuff. Smell this, guys. This is so good!”  
You brought the candles up to Clint and Scott’s nose, their expressions changing within seconds- going from curious cats to tranquil beings.  
“Damn! That is good. I’m buying one too.” Scott took the candle from your hand and turned towards the kind featured latina who owned the humble store. “For Hope?” You asked, making him turn again to come for another piece. “Yup, for her too.”  
“Wanda said she’d like one for herself as well,” Clint mentioned it in passing as you counted the order before helping others pack up the stuff, “which one do you think she’ll like?”  
You did not look at Clint as you shrugged before scratching an itch in your scalp. “I don’t know. I’m really not the expert in these things,” you pointed out before your eyes locked on to a golden coloured candle on display named 'Moonlight Shower’. You picked it up and asked the owner to bill it separately for you.   
The moment the car doors slammed shut, Clint’s voice vibrated throughout the vehicle. “All right, that’s it,” he turned towards you, “out with it. What did Wanda do?”  
Everyone stared between you and him, waiting for someone to say something.  
“What? Clint, what are y-”  
“Cut it, Y/N. Give it to me, straight. Why is it that you are so afraid of picking up a candle for her, let alone her call?”  
“No, it’s not like that…” your voice trailed off as Clint sat there, frozen beside you, not moving a muscle, almost looking like a statue. A scary statue  
“Okay, fine. I’m scared of her.”  
“Why?”  
“She reads thoughts, Clint.”  
“Then tell her to stop.”  
“Really? What about the things she’s already seen inside my head, huh? And it’s just mind reading now. God knows what might happen in the future.”  
Clint narrowed his eyes at you. “What do you mean?”  
“You know what I mean,” you responded matter-of-factly. “No, I don’t.”  
Scott had quietly opened his packet of skittles by now, his eyes ever moving only between the two of you.  
“I’m talking about the thing she does with your thoughts.”  
“She would never do that,” Clint announced, almost sounding offended at your words.  
“How do you know that for sure?”  
“She hasn’t done it. Not in a while.”  
“But she did do it once, Clint. I saw the news when Dr Banner was not in control of the Hulk.”  
“But she’s changed.”  
“How can I be sure after the things I’ve seen her unleash? She has hurt so many people in the past.”  
A tired sigh escaped Clint as he closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Y/N, she is not what she was years ago. Yes, she admits she has hurt people, manipulated their minds, showed them their worst fear. But she chose to change and so she is here. In a good place. You have to give her a chance.”  
Silence.  
He opened his eyes and turned to you. You were still sitting there but instead of any expression of fear or doubts, your brows were raised in a mum question.  
Clint’s brows furrowed as he looked at the hint of a smile at the corner of your lips. Within seconds, a realisation dawned upon him, his brows going back to their original form as he looked straight ahead.  
“Oh my God.”  
Scott looked between the two of you, confused, enjoying his skittles while offering some to the cameraman out of frame.  
“You played me.”  
Your smile widened. “Did I, though?”  
“Don’t…”  
“Come on, Clint. Just like you said, give him a chance.”  
Clint looked at you, his demeanour breaking a little before he shook his head and drove towards home.

 **Scott:** _I still have no idea what went down. But Y/N seemed happy and Clint not so much so I guess it was something good. *nod of satisfaction*_

 **You:** _Oh, and I forgot to mention that when my system shuts down, I often play with people’s moral standings because all my emotional complexities are no longer working to understand why the other thinks right is right and wrong is wrong. *wide-eyed smile* Oh, yes, I have to do one more thing. Come on *gestures at the camera to follow her out of the room*_

You crossed the lounge and moved towards the dorms to go to your room and pick up the candle you bought today. “I know everyone will be gifted something or the other today after the rehearsal dinner, like Natasha mentioned,” you whispered near the camera, “but I wasn’t sure if they have something for Loki. So, I got this for him. I’ll just put it over in the gifts pile.”  
You moved down the corridor to the last room and opened the door to reveal a table filled with gifts marked for everyone. “Wow,” you exhaled, wide eyes, “This stuff seems customised. Okay, let’s just put our little candle here.” You picked up a stick-on note from the counter beside you and scribbled Loki’s name as neatly as possible before sticking it to the glass encased candle. “There,” you smiled, happy with yourself and moved out of the room.  
  
“Y/N, can I talk to you for a second?” Tony’s voice from the balcony outside the lounge called for you. The entire lounge was empty. Natasha had called everyone downstairs for the status report.  
  
 **Natasha:** _Everything worked out smoothly. *smiles* Everything except Barton, as usual. Thanks to him, my arch is still undone, Loki is nowhere to be found and I have an eighteen-year-old tangled in fairy lights. *smiled again* Everything is fine._

Tony kept the door open for you as you entered the balcony. The camera-  standing in the lounge from where it could clearly record everything happening outside the glass walls- focused on his face as it saw a flicker of gold behind him. For a split second, his eyes turned green for the camera before reverting to his brown and stepping outside to where you stood.  
“Hey, Mr Stark. I thought you were coming at nine for the rehearsal dinner?” 

“Yes, but there was a change of plans.” Tony’s voice sounded grim, almost unnatural.  
You could not help but notice he was trying to put too much effort into keeping his poise.  
“Everything okay, Mr Stark?” You could feel a sudden panic rise in your stomach.  
  
 **You:** _*sitting in silence for a few moments* I…*voice cracks* I um…*smiles* I thought he was going to tell me that he could no longer sponsor my studies or that I would have to move away from here. *silence again as you look down at the floor for a few seconds before smiling weakly for the camera and walking out*_  
  
“There is something you should know, Y/N.” Tony brought his hands- that were resting behind him- in front of him, presenting you with a manila folder.  
You looked at it for a moment, not sure what bomb was going to blow in your face, before taking it.  
A cold wind passed through your hair. The camera standing inside the lounge focused on your face, as confusion was replaced by…a blank expression.  
Tony looked towards the camera recording the two of you before turning back to you.

“I hate to be the bearer of this news Y/N, but turns out-”

Your eyes never left the pages in front of you.

“I’m adopted.” You finished his sentence for him.


	7. Episode 7: My Ship!

The soft wind kept turning your hair, caressing it as if stroking you lightly while you read and re-read the clear print that stated in bold words that you were not biologically related to your parents.  
“This…” Your voice did not rise from a whisper as Tony’s figure stood opposite you, not moving a muscle. The camera did catch the flash of a smirk before it vanished as quickly as it had come on his lips.  
“This-” You finally turned up from the folder to look at Tony- “makes so much sense.”

  
 **Loki** : _*mouth opened in a confused state, his hands pointed to some relevant, invisible object in front of him* What in the name of all things sensible?_  
  
“I beg your pardon?” Tony exclaimed, clearly caught off guard.  
You breathed in the cold evening air before blinking furiously to wipe away the unnecessary moisture in your eyes. “I-I meant this makes sense considering my…upbringing.” You wanted to say something more but stopped.  
“Sorry,” you smiled weakly after a lungful of breath, “this is shocking but… not shocking, if that makes sense. In fact,” you nodded your head, contemplating some hidden thoughts, “I feel like I should’ve seen this sooner.”  
Tony shook his head, opening his mouth to speak when you cut him at his inhale. “I’m sorry Mr Stark,” you gave the file back, “I’d like a minute alone with myself to…uhh…gather my thoughts. I’ll just recalibrate my nerves and meet you downstairs.”  
His eyes followed you till you disappeared from the lounge, his jaw twitching.  
  
 **You** : _*coming back with a bottle of water* yeah, sorry I was a bit dehydrated due to water loss from all the crying. So where were we? *smiles*_  
  
 **Loki** : _*silent stare* *deep inhale* This was supposed to shock her, throw her off balance. Of course, it works a hundred per cent all the time. I speak from first-hand experience. And in no world is this supposed to make SENSE. *frustrated stare turning blank* That spider-ling has some questions he needs to answer._  
  
“Are you ready?” Nat whispered from behind Peter, who shook any tight muscles off his legs as he jumped up and down before nodding.  
“Ready, Miss Romanoff.”  
“On my signal-” Nat looked down at the tab to see a figure come in view over the live footage- “Now!”  
Peter ran towards the door, grabbing something from his left and jumped up the steel structure standing over the lawn, swinging to and from the inside and outside of the hexagonal frames like a needle going up and down a cloth. He was clearly enjoying himself, swaying up and around, not letting go of the elongated string in his hand till he had covered every part of the edge.  
He finally came down, breathless.  
“I did it, Miss Romanoff.” He shouted from the other end. “Mr White Wolf sir,” he panted into his comms, “your turn.”  
Bucky jumped from the floor above onto a platform hanging mid-air with chains. “Scott, move me in position,” he shouted to the thirty feet tall figure at the other end of the chains.  
“Heeeere you go Sarg.” Scott carefully moved him over the steel frame Peter had been swinging from, lowering him right in the middle of the structure. Bucky brought both his arms under the inner the frame- that was nearly a meter wide in diameter- and gripped it tightly between his fingers.  
“White wolf in position. I’m beaming him up.” Scott carefully moved the platform up, allowing Bucky to bend his knees as his arms and torso lifted the weight of the inner frame, taking it up with him while the strings Peter has so intricately wrapped around them swung wildly.  
“Careful with the wires Mr White Wolf sir.” The spider boy was on his toes as he watched Bucky grunt.  
“That’s it, Barnes,” Natasha announced, “Keep it steady. Scott, halt right there. Sam, Rhodey, Wanda, you’re up. Move, move, move!”  
The Falcon and War Machine glided down from the sky as Wanda made six steel bars float to the vertices of the outer hexagon, connecting it to the inner one being held in position by Bucky. Keeping them afloat, she created a plasma shield around the wires to prevent Peter’s hard work from being ruined with the fireworks that were about to happen.  
Sam took the outer edges, using Stark’s handy tech- which was practically a black and red metal hand glove with laser source fitted over the palm- to weld the beams in position while Rhodey took the inner edge, standing over the platform to keep the sparks away from Bucky.   
“Woohoo! Mission accomplished!” Scott declared as he picked up the platform and put it down on the ground.  
“Show me what to looks like Nat.” Sam came down and turned towards the Black Widow, who showed a hint of a smirk as her fingers hovered over a switch.  
“Let there be light,” she whispered and flipped it.  
The strings of lights sewn across the structure illuminated the entire lawn in the best golden hue, glittering, appearing what the universe would look like if it were still in its nascent stage of growth, a thousand diamonds clustered together all around them.  
  
 **Bucky** : _The planner did arrive and complain about there being no preparations whatsoever on the lawn where the wedding is supposed to take place tomorrow. What he didn’t know was that Natasha already had taken care of everything. *shifts in his seat* And by taking care, I mean she assigned us our work. *glares into the camera*_  
  
Nat looked at the sharp-nosed planner who stood astounded by the scene that had just unfolded in front of him while his employees stood behind him mirroring his expression before breaking into applause.  
  
 **Natasha** : _That snob clearly underestimated my managerial skills *pans into her face* so I gave him a taste. *devilish smirk*_  
  
 **Bucky** : _When Steve told me to move in with other Avengers, I would not have guessed that I would be doing…*gestures in space in front of him* that. It was-_  
 **Peter’s voice** : _Awesome!  
*camera pans out to reveal an over-excited Peter sitting next to Bucky*_  
 **Bucky** : _*inhales while looking at the camera*_  
 **Peter** : _*nearly jumping out of his chair* Mr Barnes was killing it up there._  
 **Bucky** : _*looks at Peter through the corner of his eyes* *turns back towards the camera* *blushes and smiles*_  
  
“There you are!” You called out to Loki, who was coming towards you from the direction of the lab and Tony’s study. “Nat’s been looking everywhere for us. Come on, let’s finish the arch.”  
Loki examined you up and down before entering the elevator and standing beside you at the back to give the camera guy some space.  
“Miss Y/L/N,” Friday’s voice echoed through the elevator.  
“Yes, Friday?”  
“Mr Lang says Mr Parker is ‘down for karaoke night’. He would like to know if you have asked 'the goth God’ yet.”  
Loki’s brows furrowed and his arms went across his chest.  
“I’ll speak with him myself, Friday. Thank you very much.”  
“As you wish, Miss Y/L/N.”  
The camera recorded Loki leaning back on the elevator wall, his eyes watching your hands run over your neck, reaching at the back, trying to soothe some microscopic crinkles.  
“Would you like to join us tonight?” You looked at Loki’s perfect reflection in the mirrored wall in front of you as the camera panned into Loki’s reflection looking at yours.  
“Do you want me to?” He asked in the most cryptic manner.  
You frowned back at his reflection. “Why wouldn’t I want you to?”  
“Oh, so you want me to be there,” he sang in a low tone.  
“Yeah, karaoke is fun,” you responded matter-of-factly before your hand went back to scratch your neck again.  
“Fun for whom?” He shot back, still leaning on the wall but now he had turned towards you.  
You turned towards him as well, studying his green eyes for a moment. “Loki, is everything okay?” Your voice the soothing whisper that you used when you were concerned.  
“I don’t know,” he shrugged, his arms still crossed over his chest as his frown returned, “is it?”   
The elevator dinged and he got out first, leaving you confused.  
  
 **You** : _*standing at the entrance to the lawn* Is he okay? Did I do something? *turning to look in his directions* *camera zooms in on him asking Scott about Peter before zooming back to you* Oh boy! *sudden realisation* Did he find out Tony didn’t get him a gift?  
*frowns at the cameraman* What? Why are you shaking your head with such defeated expression? Even Gods get hurt on petty things, man! Look at the Greeks!_  
  
“Are you looking at this?” Peter said into the camera, pointed at the arch that stood there without any decorations. “That’s it. That’s my ship’s condition right now. They are just standing there, quite visible to each other but neither of them,” he moved to the table next to him where the flowers and lights were waiting and picked one in each hand to show it to the camera, “is putting in the work. If you don’t decorate the ship, how are you supposed to sail?”  
“Using a mast and the lack of holes in a working ship,” you answered from behind him, making Peter jump and let out a tiny scream.  
“How long have you been standing there?” he asked you, trying to control the fear creeping over his pale face as he stole glances at the camera.  
“Long enough to know that you think adding frill to the skeleton would help a ship sail,” you scoffed before smiling and went over to pick up and examine the flowers Tony had selected for the arch.  
Peter looked back at the camera, composing himself. “I-uh…it was a metaphor,” he mumbled.  
“Yeah, yeah, listen,” you turned towards him, half interested in what he had to say right now about metaphorical ships, your voice turning into a whisper, “do you know what’s going on with Loki? He’s been acting…well, I don’t know how to put it-”  
“Strange? Creepy? Betrayed? Hurtful?” Peter listed off all the possibilities, making you wonder if he knew something. You stole a glance at the camera before turning towards him with narrowed eyes.  
“All right, I’ll tell you,” he sighed, coming closer so he could whisper the details, out of earshot of any suspicious listeners.  
“Mr Loki is suspicious that someone’s trying to prank them, make it not easy for them to live here. He is quite sure that the person is trying to find ways to sabotage their peace. I think that’s what he said.”  
Your brows shot up as you looked at Parker with nothing but astonishment.  
“He told me himself, Y/N. He came to me for help. He wanted to know the best way to ruin their plans.”  
  
 **You** : _That *pause* was *breaks into laughter* the cutest thing I have ever heard.  
*camera pans out to reveal a red-faced Peter standing cross-armed right next to you*_  
 **Peter** : _I’m standing right here, Y/N. *clenches his jaw*_  
  
“Sorry. I’m sorry,” you raised your hands to signal that you were done laughing. “And I think I might know the reason why Loki feels like that.”  
“Why?”  
“Natasha told me that Mr Stark was planning on giving everyone some sort of a gift after the rehearsal dinner. Now when she said everyone, I feel she only meant the Avengers.”  
Realisation dawned on Peter. “Oh. Oh! That’s…aw man. Should we get him something?”  
“Already did. It isn’t much though. I got him a candle. I don’t know if he’ll like-”  
“He’ll love it,” Peter stopped you short with an assuring nod.  
  
 **Peter** : _*smiling* And my ship has a mast! *gasps* I have to tell Scott._  
  
“Peter,” Loki called out as he approached the boy who was power walking towards Scott, “inside, now.”  
The command in his voice made Peter turn towards the camera and wonder what happened now.  
“Everything okay, Mr Loki?”  
“It didn’t work.”  
“What didn’t?”  
“Your plan,” Loki stretched out his words.  
“My plan? You mean the prank thing I suggested?”  
“Yes, it didn’t work. Y/N was completely unphased when I tricked her into reading the parchments that said she was adopted.”  
The confusion in Peter’s eyes turned into full-blown horror as his jaw dropped. “You did WHAT?!”  
  
 **Peter** : _*breathing heavily* *shrill voice* I retract my previous statement. The mast has been snatched, the deck is on fire and there is a goddamn hole at the bottom!! *facepalms hard* Aw fudge!_  
  
Peter dragged Loki by the hand into the far corner of the empty banquet hall that was now looking a bit smaller with all the tables and chairs standing around them. The camera remained at a distance from them, recording the angst-filled whispers and frustrations quite well.  
“Why would you do that Mr Loki?” Peter hissed.  
Loki looked at the frustrated spider-ling clearly taken aback at his outburst.  
“You suggested it,” Loki stated as if pointing out the obvious.  
“No,” Peter negated, shaking his head furiously, “I told clearly told you to prank them…her with silly strings, not punch the life out of her!”  
“I didn’t-”  
“Metaphors, Mr Loki! Metaphors! This was supposed to be a fun thing. Light mischief! Why would you do that to her? What did she ever do to you?”  
The emotional outburst from Peter’s eyes was a surprise for the God.  
“She’s planning something against me, Parker,” Loki’s cutting tone bringing out his frustrations, “she keeps getting me these tokens and gifts to mock me and even made me eat those delectable chocolates when Clint has already let it slip out once that chocolates are not a dessert that people like sharing. She is dripping with malice.”  
Peter’s hurt-filled eyes went blank before his entire expression turned wry before his hazel orbs closed. He took in one elongated breath as he brought his palms together, nearly touching his lips. “No offence, Mr Loki, but you are one blithering idiot.”  
  
 **Loki** : _*silence*  
*inhales* The audacity… of that arachnid._  
  
“How dare-”  
“No, how dare you?” Peter cut Loki off, looking done with everything. “Y/N doesn’t complain when you drink from her cup because she thinks it’s your way of trying to get people’s attention but in a positive sense. Ah-ah-ah I’m not done yet. She brought you that keychain and ring because she wanted to and she was happy to find out you liked those chocolates. Chocolates are a stress buster, Mr Loki. You eat them with people you like. She even went to the lengths of fighting with Mr Barton to change his cold views regarding you.”  
“She didn’t have to-” Loki’s icy voice wanted to speak the fact but Peter cut him again.  
“Exactly. She didn’t have to but she still did because she doesn’t want you to feel left out or alone here considering the only person on this planet you barely like is Mr Thor and he is always busy with the Asgardians. She even went out of her way to get you a gift so that it doesn’t bother you when Mr Stark gives everyone but you a present. I shouldn’t have said this but my impulse is on an all-time high and I will continue to blurt out. She isn’t doing anything out of malice or spite Mr Loki. I don’t know what she has experienced in her life to have the bar of second chances set lower than the Avengers to treat you like any other human being and you just went ahead and ruined it. I am surprised she is even looking your way right now.”  
Loki turned to the direction Peter pointed, out to the lawn where you stood with Scott deciding how the flowers should go above the arch, turning towards Loki and smiling lightly before pointing at the watch on your phone, reminding him of Natasha’s deadline.  
“Well, it wasn’t exactly me who gave her the news.”  
Peter was confused again.  
  
 **Peter** : _*puckering his face and nodding* Great. This is great. First Mr Stark is going to murder him and then me. Fantastic. *smiles* And if he doesn’t kill me, Aunt May definitely will. I was forever doomed to die._  
  
 **Loki** : _So, *pause* according to Peter I have *air quotes* screwed up big time *mumbles under his breath* whatever that means.  
*scoffs* *turning his gaze towards the door* *camera turns to see Scott and Peter standing there, arms crossed, shaking their heads in negation*  
*camera turns back to Loki*  
*acting oblivious* What?_  
  
“Y/N.”  
You turned around to look at Loki standing behind you.  
“Finally,” you heaved a sigh of relief.  
“I have something to-”  
“Listen Loki,” you cut him short, exhausted by the day, “I’m sure there is a very good reason behind whatever is bothering you but tomorrow is a significantly huge day for Mr Stark and Miss Potts. So, just for them-” you brought forward a rough sketch of the flower and lighting arrangement for the arch- “please bear me tonight.”  
Loki looked down at the sketch and then back at you. He stood there, frozen for a moment before realising the presence of the camera standing in front of you both. He did a light flick of his wrist and looked towards the arch. “It looks beautiful,” was all he stated, making you follow his eyes and stand in awe of the end result of that rough sketch of yours.  
  
 **You** : _*smiling wildly standing proudly beside the arch* this is beyond stunning if I say so myself. *teary eyed* *croaky voice* And certainly a good way to end a really really crappy day. *wide grin hiding the happy tears*_  
  
“There she is!” Natasha announced as you joined everyone at the table under the starry lights.  
“Amazing work, you guys!” You cajoled, pointing at the lit up structure above and around you.  
“We had an amazing coordinator,” Scott acknowledged, gesturing towards Nat.  
“You guys have done such a brilliant work but you really didn’t have to go to these lengths Nat,” Pepper, who was wrapped in Tony’s arms at the front of the table, mentioned.  
“Considering whom you’re marrying Pepper, I’d say you deserve something way better than this,” Nat quipped.  
A bunch of _ohs_ and ’ _she said that_ ’ echoed over the table.  
“Did you just- I’ll take that as a compliment. No presents for you today, Romanoff.” Tony glared at the Black Widow before Pepper had his full attention.  
Everyone at the table raised their champagne glasses to toast to the bride and groom. The night went by laughing at past memories of the two narrated for everyone by Rhodey and Nat as Tony and Pepper added their own commentary in between. Scott and Peter kept checking up on you, without your knowledge, time to time while you smiled and often joined others in the laugh. Loki said nothing for the entire evening, not even one sarcastic remark even when a very confused Tony presented him with the candle you’d got for him but said nothing and gave the God a light pat on the back before mingling with others.  
  
 **Scott** : _Y/N didn’t bring up anything in front of Tony so everything is fine. It’s all under control. No one’s getting murdered tonight. *smiles*  
*smile fades away* *distant look in his eyes*  
*mutters to himself* No one but my one good ship. *starts to sob* What am I supposed to tell Cassie now?_   
  
“I’m coming, sweetheart. You wait by the car. I’ll be there in a minute.” Tony kissed Pepper.  
“You better not start building something in that one minute, Tony.” She sweetly threw the words at him, making him chuckle.  
“I’m serious.” Kissing him, she went outside.  
Tony opened his study and walked in, the camera standing at the entrance.  
He took out an envelope from his jacket, opened the drawer to his table, took out the familiar manila file and put the envelope in there. He turned his gaze away from the envelope to the camera at the door.  
“What’re _you_ looking at?”  
“Mr Stark?” A familiar voice came from behind the camera, making Tony keep the manila file back into the drawer within a flash, his expressions never showing any change.  
“Hey, Y/N. Come in.”  
You came inside his study, appreciating the nicely done woodwork, books, his old suits and trinkets of value only Tony knew about, around you.   
“I wanted to talk to you about what happened today.”  
Tony’s brows constricted for a moment as you bit your lower lip, gathering your nerves to say what you were about to say.  
“What is it?” He never took his gaze away from you, clicking the drawer close as slowly as possible before casually sitting down over the table.  
“I think it would be nice if no one else knows about it. For now.”  
“About what?”  
The camera caught the tiny jaw drop you felt before closing your mouth shut.  
“About the thing that happened today, Mr Stark?”  
Tony sat there confused, turning his gaze towards his drawer before his eyes went wide.  
“Oh, oh! So you were the one who brought Loki that-that candle. Was it a candle? He likes candles! Is he into aromatherapy? Did he tell you that?”  
For a moment you stood there, surprised as you were- and a little irritated- at Tony.  
“No, Mr Stark,” you pressed your fingers on your forehead “I meant…the thing on the balcony.”  
It was Tony’s turn to be confused.  
“What thing? What balcony?”  
Silence.  
It took you a few moments to unfreeze yourself from the expression that was a mixture of a confused daze before you were melting in one peaceful being standing there, satisfied with whatever thought that had come to your mind.  
“Nothing, Mr Stark. I was confused for a moment about something else.”  
  
Loki stood under the dim lights in the library looking at the books in front of him, grumbling to himself.  
“He can make a library but he can’t keep a librarian to tell-wait. Friday!” He shouted into thin air.  
“Yes, Mr Odinson,” came the prompt reply.  
“Loki would suffice, thank you. Can you tell me where can I find a book that could show me the ways to apologise to a human being for committing a terrible mistake?”  
Loki looked up at the thin air, lightly scratching at his left hand as he waited for Friday’s reply.  
“I cannot find a book for the specified topic in the library, Mr Loki but I do have a search result ready for twenty-six ways to apologise to your girlfriend.”  
Loki narrowed his eyes before letting go of a frustrated breath. “Useless. Leave me be.”  
“As you wish Mr Loki.”  
He stood there, running his hand through his hair while the other one picked up the candle sitting on the table next to him, to figure out what to do while the camera caught a figure behind him standing at the entrance in the dark. “Really useless,” he spoke, looking down at the candle.  
“Is it true?”  
Your voice suspended his movements, forcing him to turn in your direction.  
“The papers, I mean. Whatever was written in there,” the coarseness from your throat ran into the words.  
He looked at your blank eyes to get a read on you but ended up with nothing.  
“Yes.”  
You blinked.  
“Does Mr Stark know about this information?”  
“…He has the papers.”  
He shifted a little, waiting for some reaction from you.  
You simply breathed in a lungful and licked your lips.  
“Don’t tell Mr Stark what you did today.”  
The camera saw a wave of a dazed surprise run over Loki’s face.  
“Y/N I-”  
“It’s a very important day for him tomorrow and I’d rather it not be ruined by things that do not concern him or anyone else in this house,” you announced as turned to go away before pausing. “Throw away that candle if it feels useless.”  
You disappeared down the hall as Loki stood there speechless.  
  
 **Loki** : _It was me I was referring to as useless. *silence* Well, now I feel I really did screw up, *brows of morbid concern*_  


 **You** : _How did I know? *scoffs* Let’s see. One word: language._

 **Later that night**  
Two dozen security men stand guard throughout the Avengers facility for the big day tomorrow. Clint and Nat are busy discussing with the head of security about next day’s detail while a figure tries to open up the doors to the training room through the security pad in the wall.  
“No one’s allowed in there except the Avengers.”  
The man’s reflexes act fast as he turns towards you in a second and flashes a toothy smile. His grey eyes study your judgy expression before taking in your figure clad in your PJs.  
“Is that so?” He says casually. “I didn’t know that, Miss…”  
“Who are you?” You fire the question as politely as possible, your arms draped around your chest.  
“I’m Jim, from the new security detail, ma'am. I was studying the building to be prepared for any kind of breach tomorrow.”  
You raise an eyebrow at him, clearly not buying it. “Well, Jim from security detail, you don’t need to access places you’re not allowed to for a reason. I suggest you take whatever Mr Barton and Ms Romanoff have for you.”  
Jim takes a step towards you, his heavy build towering over you as his intimidating eyes try to push you down. “And who are you?”  
“No one that you should concern yourself with,” you throw back without hesitation.  
“Not even if I’m interested in asking you out?” he smiles, his tone quite suggestive.  
You smirk a little, making him lean beside you as he tried to come closer.  
“Look towards your right,” you simply say.  
He turns and sees the camera recording the both of you, caught off guard, his cocky smile disappearing.  
“They are everywhere around here. Now, if you really would like to keep your job, I suggest you do it properly, Jim.”  
He looks at the camera again that starts following you as you turn towards the lounge.   
Jim heaves a sigh of relief before checking for any other cameras.  
“Who was it?” a voice comes over his comms.  
“No one,” he says under his breath still keeping his eyes sharp as he moves away from the training wing.  
“Did you get in?”  
“No. I don’t have access. And I think I know who can help me get in.”  
He smiles before mingling in with four more security personnel headed for the debriefing by Hawkeye and the Black Widow outside.


	8. Episode 8: Pepperoni Part I

**Tony** : _What do you mean am I excited? It’s my wedding day. The day of my wedding with the best, most amazing woman on earth, nay, this entire universe. *sarcastic mutters* Am I excited *announces* I am not excited, I’m delighted, I’m hysterical, I am *breathes* nervous. *camera zooms in* I’m terrified. *tilts head towards the door and shouts* Pepper are you sure you want to do this?! I mean, marry me? I love you so much and I just want to make sure you do not think this is a horrible decision._  
*Pepper’s voice comes from the lounge, saying ‘Tony, relax. Did you take your meds?’*  
Yes! *Replies, 'Okay. Now, breathe. I love you, honey.’*  
*straightens to look back at the camera* *content sigh* That’s my future wife. *beams*

 **Pepper** : _He saves the entire *censored* planet without as much as a thought for his personal safety let alone his health and now he thinks he doesn’t deserve happiness? *smiles and shrugs* I won’t say anything today. I’ll just marry the *censored* out of him to show him what he deserves. *chuckles* And *straightens in her chair* I swear to God if anyone tried to crash my wedding I am going to rip their *censored* throat out and crush their skull with my bare hands._  
  
 **Tony** : _It’s the hormones. Dr Cho mentioned it yesterday when Pepper won’t stop positively cursing the news of the doctor’s marriage last night. *giggles* She looks so cute when she swears. *Pepper’s angry voice comes from the lounge 'Tony! Get your *censored* ass in the suit already!’*  
*camera zooms out to reveal him in his blue tee and black workout shorts* See? So cute! *blushing furiously*_  
  
Pepper was getting ready in your room which you had happily loaned to her for the day. Natasha had just finished putting her hair in a flawless side bun and was readying the items for her makeup when you walked in.  
“Pepper, the package is here. Natasha here is Tony’s ring. Pietro is bringing Dum-e to the lawn, slowly but surely they’ll reach there. I have no idea why Wanda wanted him to do the task. That guy is nearly in tears right now. And-”  
“And you are still not ready,” Pepper announced, making the camera give a once-over to you in your track pants, a tank top, your tied-up hair a complete mess and your face worn-off.  
“Y/N, sweety, you look like you haven’t slept in ages. Please just go take a shower and get ready.”  
“But there’s still-”  
“No,” Pepper declared with her eyes while Natasha signalled you from behind her to stop arguing and do as she says.  
  
 **Natasha** : _Wow! This girl must really love organizing things because she’s been going up and down since five in the morning. *takes a sip of her mimosa* I trust her. Like I said before, she’s the only adult here. *shrugs* What do you mean what about Clint? You want the wedding to take place today without anyone getting drunk up to their eyeballs, right?_  
  
 **Clint** : _What? That’s a really good idea. Booze is the best magic potion. You remember you had a blast but you don’t remember the details but you DO remember that it was a blast. *shrugs and opens his arms as if stating the obvious* food tastes good, music sounds wonderful and people cry over their ex. *smiles* perfect wedding._  
  
You took in Natasha’s signals and sighed. “Okay. Fine. I-uhh… let me see what I can wear and I’ll be out of here,” you muttered as you started walking towards your closet.  
“But you already have something to wear,” Natasha stated casually, pointing her gaze towards something behind you.  
You turned to see a dress cover lying on the couch next to your window.  
“This isn’t mine.” You turn around to look at Pepper and Nat exchanging a smirk.  
“It is. Now go shower. Quick.” Pepper gave her final word while Nat eyed you to pick it up and go already.  
You took it by the hanger, not sure what was inside, and walked out in a confused daze, colliding with Loki at the door.  
“I’m sorry,” he spoke like a natural reflex, something you, clearly, found odd.  
The camera caught you two lock eyes for a moment. Loki watched you, measuring the weary look in your eyes. He was about to speak when you turned your gaze away to someone behind him.  
“Hey, Scott!” The camera turned towards a frustrated Scott coming out of his room trying to work a knot with his tie.  
“Can I use your room to get ready?”  
Scott looked up, finally giving up, his hands turning up in the air before falling on his side in utter defeat.  
“Sorry, Y/N,” he exclaimed with a groan, making you step towards him and take the ends of his tie in your hands. “It’s a complete mess, my room. Peter shifted Zuko in there and, well, I am clearly not as good a mom like you.”  
You huffed at him, patiently working with the soft blue fabric in your hand. “That’s because you’re a grandma, Scott,” you coo into the air, making the Ant-man feel a smile come up over his lips, “you are supposed to spoil your grandkids.”  
“Aw. Thanks, Y/N. I really needed that.”  
“You can use my room,” Loki’s voice came from behind you, making Scott raise a brow at the camera before pressing an involuntary smile trying to escape his lips.  
You tightened the knot, a little too much, making Scott squirm within the hold for a second before you let go, straightening his collar and smoothening out the creases.  
“It’s fine. I’ll ask Wanda,” you state without even looking at the God.  
“Oh for God’s sake, Y/N. Just go to his room,” Pepper shouts from inside, done with all of you already. “He’s a God for *censored* sake. I’m sure he’s got more manners and organisation skills than the men on earth.  
Loki and Scott look at Pepper in surprise, letting her words sink in before looking at each other and nodding in agreement.  
  
 **Scott** : _The more I get to know Pepper the more I admire her for her tenacity. *pause* And definitely for not turning the things between Loki and Y/N into an angsty soap opera. *whispers to himself with his eyes closed* God, I can already hear wedding bells. *opens eyes and freezes for a moment* Wait, no that was Peter falling inside the Christmas decorations vortex in the storage room next to us. * gets up from the chair, nearly toppling over some invisible strings* Better help him out._  
  
Loki turned the door handle to his room, opening and making way for you to enter his space. This was the first time the camera was noticing that his room was right next to yours, mimicking the setting of your room like a mirror, the bed, surprisingly, covered in yellow cotton sheets right next to the wall separating the two of you. The room was painted in a subtle grey, allowing the soft yellow lights to bounce off them with calming hues, easing you into the oddly comforting setting.  
"Huh,” you muttered to yourself, “aesthetic.”  
Loki stood at the doorway looking at you take his personal space in, never taking his eyes off you even as he smacked Scott in the chest when the Ant-Man tried to sneak past him to get a good look himself.  
“Say something, man,” Scott whispered to the God as he rubbed his throbbing chest. “Say what?” Loki whispered back, unsure.  
“About _yesterday_ ,” Scott responded, stressing his words under his breath.  
Loki’s wrinkled brows eased themselves as he remembered last night’s events.  
Scott signalled him to go on before hiding himself from your view.  
“Y/N, I-”  
“I’m good,” you interrupted him, faking a smile, “Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to take a shower and get ready.”  
  
 **Loki** : _I must say I wasn’t this hurt when Thor had found out about the Destroyer. You come into my room and you shoo me away like a fowl peasant. *squints at the camera* Reasonable considering she needed privacy but still *camera pans in* I’m hurt._  
  
 **Meanwhile outside in the lawn**  
Pietro sat dejectedly on the steps leading to the grass, his head between his hands as he looked at dummy finally reaching the stony path created as the aisle leading to the arch you and Loki had created last night. Wanda, dressed in a white embellished with orange stones, her hair tied into a neat bun at the back, welcomed the guests with Rhodey, who was looking the perfect best man in his three-piece suit.  
It wasn’t long before a loud rumbling was heard and Wanda worked her fingers to form a plasmic protection bubble around the setting before Thor or his thunder destroyed it.  
“Top of the morning my friends,” the cheery God of thunder had a jump in his step as he walked towards the duo, “It is finally the day of Stark and Pepper’s nuptials!”  
“Please, do not destroy the lawn, man,” Rhodey growled, “Tony might be a billionaire but there are things like last minute redecorations that even he or his bots cannot do.”  
A sparkling flare originated mid-air behind Wanda, right next to Bucky- who was trying to figure out whether the Long Island Iced Tea that Sam just handed him was really tea, without drinking it- making the super soldier take the stirrer out form the glass and hold it as a stabbing tool for whatever was about to enter through the hold inside the flare getting wider by the minute.  
“What? You forgot Tony’d invited sorcerers to the wedding as well?”  
Two figures stepped out of the sparkling circle portal dressed in dapper suits, giving a once-over to their bows and cufflinks as they proceeding to greet the Avengers.  
“Wong. Doctor Strange,” Rhodey greeted them with a firm handshake.  
Scott came out of the halls and scanned the area before his eyes stopped at the sorcerers’ figures, making him walk towards them with a smug grin on his face.  
“I hope you brought your A game to the party Doc,” Scott commented, making Steven turn towards him with a blank expression, “because I dare you to outdo this!” A full set of pennies sat in between his fingers out of thin air, which he continued to throw in the air while making a set of all Jokers and Kings in a deck appear in each hand like a preset fan that allowed the descending pennies to rest on each card individually. Those pennies were once again thrown into the air to make the fan of cards in his hands disappear, allowing his fingers to smoothly swipe the air of falling pennies before opening his palms to show nothing.  
“Woah!” Bucky and Sam exclaimed in unison, their eyes and mouth open wide.  
  
 **Sam** : _That is some Cardcaptor shit right there! Next, I’m going to make him hypnotise Bucky. *malicious chuckle*_  
  
 **Inside the Banquet Hall**  
Tony is dressed and already killing the reporters- who sit in the far corner in the lawn away from the guests- trying to live tweet his hazy appearance from the glass walls while shouting out his name, hungry for a good glimpse.  
“How do I look?” He asks a little disoriented Peter, who turns towards his mentor and feels a tiny smile form over his lips.  
“Wig snatched!” He exclaims under his breath.  
“Excuse me?”  
“I-I mean you look perfect, Mr Stark. Flawless. Never better.” Peter nods his head to add weight to his words as he eyes the camera and mouths 'oh my God’.  
“Tony,” Rhodey called out as he entered the hall, “you are looking perfect. It’s finally happening. I’m so happy for you man.” His smile reached his eyes as he hugged Tony, making the groom reciprocate.  
“Your guests are pouring in. The Guardians and Captain Denver are here as well. Come on man, let’s go greet them and get ready for the ceremony.”  
  
 **Peter** : _*teary-eyed* I’m *voice cracks* I’m so happy for both of them. *sniffs* Oh look *points at someone not in the camera’s view* Aunt May is here too._  
 _*May comes into view and hugs Peter before waving at the camera*_  
 **May** : _Hi! I’m May. Peter told me about you. You guys are doing a pretty impressive job! That’s what I’ve heard. *turns to Peter, who is trying to discreetly wipe away his tears* Aww, honey. It’s okay. *kisses his head*_  
 **Peter** : _*blushing* Aunt May, stop._  
 **May** : _*tilting her head towards Peter to whisper* So who’s is this Y/N and Loki I keep hearing about?_  
  
 **Back at the Lounge**  
You come out of Loki’s room, dressed in a glittering royal blue maxi dress, the crystals on it catching the soft lights from the living room as you entered the space while wearing your earrings, your hair neatly tied in a bun at the back. The camera took in every feature of yours before pointing you towards a box kept beside a bean bag near you.  
“Is that for me?”  
You went towards the box after confirmation and took out a pair of silver pumps that went perfectly with your dress, letting a gasp leave your lungs.  
“Oh, Pepper,” you muttered before smiling and sitting down to put them on.  
“Hey, have you seen Loki?” you asked the camera guy, the only person present there apart from you. “Something’s wrong with his shower. That thing won’t shut down no matter what I try.” Your fingers worked with the thick fabric of the pumps, trying to get your feet inside as you went on. “I just closed the drainage to his tub for now. Don’t want the water to get wasted.”  
“Okay,” you declared, getting up and balancing yourself a bit before getting in sync with the heels you were wearing. “Come on, let’s find him and get this over with.”  
Both of you moved inside the elevator and went a floor up to get off.  
“He’s usually at the library,” you muttered to yourself before walking in that direction.  
At the same time, Loki entered the lounge with a camera following him. He held a box in his hand as he walked towards the rooms, turning towards the camera and ordering him to 'stay’ as he went towards his door.  
He knocked twice and waited, never noticing the muffled voices of Peter and May- entering through the elevator door- going quite on the site of the camera guy. They took cautious steps before standing by the wall next to the camera.  
“Is that-”  
“Yes, Aunt May, that’s Loki.”  
“Oooh Mama!” she cooed, not taking his eyes off of the God while Peter stood there, his brows furrowed at his aunt.  
  
 **May** : _*audible gasp* Look at those cheekbones! So sharp he could cut my *her eyes land on Peter, who stands by the doorway of the recording room, eyeing her aunt suspiciously* gift wraps. *clears throat* *turns red*_  
  
“Y/N,” Loki called out as he clicked the door but did not open it, “are you decent?”  
There was no reply from the other side of the door, making him carefully step into his space.  
The camera followed Peter and May, who now planted themselves near Loki’s door, to hear the conversation.  
A trickle of shower water running down came from behind the bathroom door, outside which Loki now stood, shifting his weight a bit before standing straight and delivering a gentle knock at the door in front of him.  
“Y/N, it’s me, Loki. I know you don’t want to talk to me right now but I beg you to hear me out.”  
There was no reply from the other side of the door, just the similar monotonous sounds of the water. He cleared his throat.  
“I’ll take that as a yes, then?”   
No answer.  
“I…am sorry. I apologise for doing what I did. I had no right to go through something so personal and lay it down in front of you in the form of a such a disrespectful skit. I-” his voice lowered, making him step closer to the door while the audience outside stepped closer to the wall- “I thought you were trying to toy with me; with my feelings. Your sweet talks and small gifts- I thought they were all a ruse to…to…break me. It is my fault. I haven’t had many friends to know what human affection looks like. Peter told me that it was your way of putting forward a hand of friendship and I believe him. He is probably the only one I would believe right now-” May turned towards her nephew and lightly patted him on the back, smiling proudly-“I should have known better than to throw such news at you considering my own experience with a situation so similar. I thought…I thought I was trying to throw you off your deception. I apologise once again. Ahem, I… have brought something for you to establish peace between us. If you are ready to forgive me, you can keep the gift with you. If not…”  
He never finished the sentence, waiting for you to say something from the other side of the door before leaving the neatly wrapped box on the bed and walking towards the corridor, making May and Peter freak out a bit as they started walking as silently as they could towards the living room.  
  
 **Same time, the Lawn**  
“You look like you bathed but forgot to take a nap.”  
Tony turned towards Clint, who stood there as if stating the obvious.  
“How do you know that?” Tony looked at Barton with suspicious eyes before Nat, who was glittering in a red lace dress, diverted his attention.  
“How’s the cake, Nat? Is it here yet?”  
“It arrived yesterday, Tony.”  
“What about the food? Are the caterers putting out enough for the guests?”  
“Yes, Tony. Everyone’s enjoying the hors-d'oeuvres. Even Nebula and Groot.”  
“Is everything fine with the security detail? I feel like we should check the security detail.”  
“Tony,” Steve’s calming voice came from behind him before he put a hand over his shoulder, “breathe. Come on, breathe.”  
Tony followed the captain’s request, taking in a lungful before pushing it all out throw his mouth.  
“Everything is fine. If something goes wrong, I’m sure all of us could take care of it without you or Pepper even knowing about it.” Steve smiled, patting his friend’s shoulder.  
“Thanks, Rogers,” Tony acknowledged, giving him a pat as well, “I still think you should check out the security de-.”  
All words were lost as his eyes caught Pepper’s figure- embraced so elegantly in white lace adorned by golden jewels and her hand holding a bouquet of red and sunkissed golden flowers- standing at the entrance of the hall, beaming as she fixed one loose strand of her golden hair and waved at her future husband, who, for obvious reasons, had again forgotten to breathe.  
  
 **All this time, upstairs**  
You walked out of the library, sighing. “I really thought he would be here, avoiding everyone else. Maybe I’m not that observant as I give myself credit for-” you continued speaking to the camera as you walked slowly, allowing the boy to match your strut,“-let’s try the-”  
You stopped midway, forcing the camera to follow the direction your eyes were looking in, catching a figure go inside Tony’s study, a few feet away from you.  
“Is that Jim? The security guy?” you questioned in whispers as you and the camera took a step forward and saw the lights flood the room- and his face- before he turned on the blinders.  
Your face wore a look of irritation. “That son of a bitch.”  
“Stay here,” you ordered the camera guy, “I’ll go see why this one keeps digging his nose where he doesn’t belong.”  
The camera stood by the corner, watching you walk confidently towards the study, zooming in to get a clearer view of you standing at the door with your arms crossed and speaking something to Jim quite callously. The camera caught a shadow behind the blinders walk towards you and stop at a little distance from where you stood.  
“I’m calling Clint,” was all that was heard before you turned to walk back and were knocked head first into the wall next to you, making the camera lower itself down to hide from the attacker’s prying eyes as he dragged your limp body inside the study.  
The camera waited for the door to close before sprinting back towards the elevator, the heavy breaths of the boy behind the recording device echoing through and through. He stopped short in front of the elevator, bringing forward his palm to be scanned at the screen next to it.  
“Welcome, Mr Javier Rodriguez,” Friday’s voice came alive in front of him, “How can I help you?”  
The boy’s shivering palms clicked the assistance tab and scrolled through the options before finding 'emergency-Human life in danger’.  
“Going somewhere, buddy?” An icy voice made the camera turn away from the screen and towards Jim’s figure that stood just inches away from the camera with a military grade knife in his hand.  
He took a step towards the camera, smiling at the screen and the person holding it, making the boy recede into the corner behind him before everything went black. 


	9. Episode 9: Pepperoni Part II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the season finale.

The black screen swept away, showing a white-carpeted area before it tilted as if being picked up from the ground, and stabilised to a back clad in blue, groaning and getting up from where it lay.  
Your face came into view, blood dripping from your forehead, your nose scrunched up in the ugliest way as pain seared through your skull.  
“Rodriguez,” your hoarse voice called out to the boy behind the screen, “you okay?”  
“Your cameraman doesn’t speak much,” a familiar voice called out from the other corner of the room, “no matter how many times I hit him.”  
Jim sat on the white leather couch going through files he had gathered next to him. You turned behind you to see the shelves being cleared of their contents, what he had not been interested in now lay on the floor, scattered.  
“You hi-” your boiling voice stopped midway as your cuffed hands came up to your pounding head together before turning to Javier to scrutinize his injuries.  
“Oh, God,” your brows turned in concern as your hands went away from the screen to check on him, “I’m so sorry Javier.”  
“This guy is a *censored* billionaire with all the latest tech,” Jim fumed from the other end, “and he’s got nothing on papers here. All I can see are bills! For chocolates, spa, therapy, custom stationery, pokemon plushies. For Skittles! Who the *censored* orders two hundred skittles in one go?”  
You looked at the camera with a blank face before letting out a sigh.  
“The same guy who’s adopted a bunch of broken people and is marrying the most powerful woman on earth right now,” you muttered.

  
 **In the Lawn**  
All eyes turned towards Pepper, people gasping in awe at the bride that stood at the entrance with Happy.  
“Are you sure about this Pepper?” He asked, shifting his weight over his legs now and then but never letting his face show any overwhelming emotions as if he was still on duty.  
“Yes, I am, Happy. Now come on, walk me down the aisle.”  
  
 **Happy** : _*shaking his head* This is happening. Two of my most treasured friends are getting married and I have been honoured with walking her down the aisle. *blinks to wipe away the moisture in his eyes before letting out a gust of breath* Finally. *voice cracks* About time these two took each other’s names. I’ve been waiting ten years now my hair’s gone grey._  
  
The music cued everyone to fall silent and look at the bride gracefully cover the distance while Tony took advantage of the turned heads to wipe away his tears. Bruce brought forward a tissue box from behind him to let Tony clean his eyes before Pepper reached the altar. Tony hugged Happy before taking Pepper’s hands to walk her up to the altar and stand to face each other with the goofiest grins on their faces.  
“Oh shoot!” Happy muttered under his breath as sat beside Peter, making the boy turn in his direction, “here come the waterworks.”  
Peter tried to soothe Happy and his eyes went to the camera standing diagonally opposite to him at the back, his brows furrowed for a second before he got up and walked towards it, meeting Loki mid-way, who saw the grim expression on the spiderling’s face and followed him.  
Clint came and stood under the arch with a book- covered in blue paper- in his hand.  
“Ladies, gentlemen, space friends…and Rocket,” he announced, looking at the genetically modified raccoon who was reaching out for Natasha’s purse before freezing where he stood, “I welcome you all to the union of two people who have been the driving force of keeping this world together to the best of their abilities while keeping each other sane.”  
“Hey, everything okay?” Peter whispered near the camera that was recording his expression change to a deep thought before going blank and looking at his watch.  
“What’s going on?” Loki called from behind him, making Peter take the God by his arm inside the large doors, the camera following them.  
“Ana says Javier had gone to record Y/N’s dress reveal one hour ago and hasn’t heard anything from him since. Come to think about it, we haven’t seen Y/N either.”  
Loki glanced towards the camera before turning back to Peter.  
“She was still in my room when I went there a few minutes ago.”  
“But we didn’t see her Mr Loki.”  
“We?” Loki questioned, catching Peter off guard.  
“Y-yeah. I-I mean Aunt May and I didn’t see her when I was showing her the lounge, remember?” he squeaked, his face going pale for a second.  
“I’ll go look for them.”  
“I’ll come.”  
“Stay here.”  
“Bu-”  
“Stay,” Loki declared, “in case they come here, I need you to call me.”  
Peter nodded and watched Loki leave the hall in long, graceful strides.  
  
 **All this while, Tony’s Study**  
“You do realise they’ll find out about all of this, right?”  
Jim looked up- to your figure leaning over the bookcase- frustrated to his eyeballs, his hair and collar a mess as he sat there defeated amongst all the papers.  
“And who’s going to tell them? You? Rodriguez? Or his cheap camera?” He turned back to the last file. “Your friend’s suffering for keeping mum about my footage from yesterday anyway.”  
“Oh for fu-” you cursed, forcing your hands into fists, ignoring the cuffs digging into your flesh, “he can’t speak, you twat!”  
Jim paused what he was doing to look up in confusion. “What?”  
“None of the documentary crew can!” you shouted. “The only language they ’ _speak_ ’ is ASL.”  
The confusion on Jim’s face slowly gave way to a far stretched smile.  
“Well, I’ll be damned. Of course, they don’t speak. It’s Tony *censored* Stark they are recording. Of course, he’d hire a silent crew that can never tell anyone what goes on behind these walls.”  
You couldn’t help but inhale with as much of blankness as you could muster. “Boy, no wonder you are so shitty at infiltration when all you are doing is jumping to conclusions here.”  
He stood up, his grey eyes marking you as he walked towards your figure that was turned away from him.  
“No, seriously though. What company hired you? Was there a black Friday sale on craigslist for your skills?”  
You turned to find him towering over you- his blank eyes taking you by surprise- driving you into the bookcase with the distance he kept receding between the two of you, locking you in place with his arms on your either side.  
“I’d be very careful with my next words if I were you,” he whispered near your ears, visibly giving your skin goosebumps as you turned away from his eyes while trying to force his chest away with your hands, “because I can hurt you in more than one way and no matter how much you would scream, no one will hear you. Once I am done with the desk behind me, you are next.”  
He stood for one elongated moment to make you as uncomfortable as possible, basking in the fear coming off of your elevated breaths and pulsating veins. Javier’s figure came into view before you shook your head, fearful of what the monster of a man might do to him, making him retreat, away from the field of view.  
Finally, he turned away, towards Tony’s desk, breaking the knob to the drawer with the hilt of his gun before opening it to take out an envelope and a file.  
Your eyes scanned the room to settle down on the tall heavy glass vase on your left. Within one step you grabbed it and not wasting another moment, raised it in the air to strike the enemy in the back of his head.  
Jim’s hand came for the vase within a flash, blocking the blow by grabbing your wrist with agonizing force while his other hand came for your throat.  
.  
“Love, it is a gentle strength,” Clint declared, as the camera caught him sharing a soft glance towards his wife and kids sitting in the audience, smiling back at him, “that keeps us together even in our most difficult times. And to say Pepper and Tony have been that strength for each other would be an understatement of the millennium. I believe you two have prepared your vows.”  
“Yes,” Pepper and Tony said in unison.  
“Pepper,” Clint acknowledged her to begin.  
“Tony,” Pepper breathed in his name, briefly looking at their hands tangled in each other’s, “I still remember the day very clearly when we first met; I threatened your security with the lie that I had pepper spray when they wouldn’t let me show you the errors in numbers. ‘Surprise’ would not do justice to the news that came later when you took me out of accounts and made me your assistant. And then I was no longer Virginia. I was Pepper. I used to think I was the unyielding one before I met you. I watched you every day walk out into the sun like it belonged to you, experienced losing you in more ways than I can count and then watched you come back again a different man, knowing that beneath all that ignorance that you displayed to the world once, lay a heart that cared more than it showed. I have learned so much from you, Tony, and I have been loved in more ways than one by you, time and again. You, Tony Stark, have always been the chaotic good in my life. You have been my family. You deserve all the love I can give you and so much more. You are too pure for this world and I vow to be your anchor in any storm that surrounds us. I vow to cherish you in all times that we are walking towards together. I, Virginia Pepper Potts, vow to keep you safe and never stop reminding you to love yourself.”  
  
 **Clint** : _I swear on my first issue of Phantom *raised the book covered in blue* in mint condition, Tony winced a little right there._  
.  
A sputtering wince left your throat as Jim’s hand closed in further around it. Your nails tried to scratch at his arms, your body growing weaker as it became painful to breathe in with every passing second.  
“Bad choice, you b-”  
“Bad choice, indeed,” a familiar smooth voice filled the air, “but not by her.”  
The camera in the room turned towards Loki, his hands resting inside the pockets of his creaseless pants while he stood in the middle of the room, never taking his eyes off from Jim’s back, who now turned towards the source of the voice, taking his gun out in a flash.  
But Loki’s stare didn’t even acknowledge his move as he looked beyond him and towards you.  
“Who the hell are you?” Jim questioned with authority, failing to grab Loki’s attention.  
“You’re bleeding,” his brows furrowed a little but his demeanour remained cold, forcing a chill run down all over the room, making Jim shift uneasily towards the God.  
“I asked who-”  
“Did he do this?” Loki’s calm voice overpowered over everything.  
A tear ran down your cheek as you nodded, not able to fight the hold around your neck anymore.  
And within a second, a force came for Jim’s shoulder holding the gun and his head, smashing his skull right into the table, breaking his hold on you. A shot went off from the gun towards Loki, who stood there still but for a tiny illumination near his chest that came as the bullet went through him.  
You wheezed for air, trying to balance yourself by grabbing the bookshelf but losing your footing and dropping down on the carpet with a thump.  
A pair of hands gently lifted you in a sitting position. It was Loki. The real Loki.  
He took off his suit jacket and carefully placed it on your bruised shoulders. He was about to say something when the sound of another shot ripped through the air and his body jerked towards you, making you flinch and Loki groan as he rolled his eyes.  
“Oh, no,” you gasped as Loki turned his head to see where the bullet went, exposing the torn shirt to your and camera’s view.  
“You,” Loki announced as he got up, making Jim’s stance flounder in disbelief, “ruined my shirt.”  
A silent instant passed through the room with the only noise coming out as your raspy breaths.  
Jim dashed for the exit, making Loki turn towards you.  
“I’m fine,” you declare, your breathing a bit better, “go take care of him.”  
And he did.  
You stood back up, supporting yourself over the desk.  
“Friday,” you called out. “Yes, Miss Y/L/N.”  
“We are safe. You can alert Natasha now.” Your left hand travelled to the back of your neck as a groan escaped your throat while your right one landed on the desk, rubbing against the envelope that had been left half open.  
“I have already informed her of the situation. Mr Loki has successfully thrown Jim, the security guy, down the railings right next to the front door.”  
You were paying half attention to what Friday said as your eyes scanned the page partially out of the envelope, your brows constricting in confusion.  
“Thanks…Friday.” Your words drowned as you lifted the page out a little more. Javier’s camera caught your eyes go wide when a faltered gasp filled your lungs as you stood there, frozen.   
.  
“Tony,” Clint turned towards the groom, who nodded in confirmation to begin.  
“Pepper-” he squeezed her hands- “you came in my life like an unchartered storm. I could have never imagined there could be someone out there who could handle one hot mess that was me. You have seen me destroy myself at night and still, I found you beside me when I woke up the next morning. You have literally saved me from dying on many occasions and your presence has kept me from driving myself off the edge. I have made many…many mistakes; almost lost you because of them and sometimes I feel like I don’t deserve the comfort you provide me so effortlessly. I am nothing without you. Tony Stark is nothing if he doesn’t have Pepper Potts by his side. He is just a man ripped off of every positive emotion. You are my family Pepper. You are my world. I _am_ because of you. I vow to protect you, love you and cherish you for the rest of our lives as Tony Stark Potts, husband of Virginia Pepper Potts Stark. I vow to give you the world. I vow to be devoted to you, to-” he looked down at the little life growing inside the tiny bump visible on Pepper- “our little one. I vow to be devoted to our family.”  
.  
“Y/N.”  
You jumped back to reality at Loki’s voice. “Hmm?”  
“Are you all right?” The God’s brows turned with concern for a moment as he looked at the blank expression in your face while your hands held his jacket tighter around you.  
“Yeah,” your voice came out almost as a squeak, forcing you to clear your throat, “yeah. I’m…fine. Javier needs some medical attention.”  
You turned towards the cameraman who was still recording you.  
“Come on, let’s get you to-”  
“I’ll take care of him,” Natasha stood by the door with another camera following her, signalling Javier to follow her. “Come on. You two should go downstairs before they start to notice all four of us missing. Loki, can you take care of her?”  
Loki turned towards Nat to give her a reassuring nod, giving you a window to slip the envelope in the jacket’s pocket, but not before the camera recorded it.  
He turned back towards you, the second camera recording a wave of his wrist around the open wound near your head to visibly shrink it to a size that was healing now.  
“Oh, God.” A groan escaped your shivering lips.  
“What is it?”  
The camera saw you tilt your head up towards Loki, looking into his green eyes before looking away, your hand going for the back of your neck. “I missed the wedding, didn’t I?”  
.  
An emotional silence filled the air as people tried to blink or wipe away their tears trying to appear composed, smiling ear to ear. Even Clint faced away from the couple to clear his throat before he could proceed further.  
“Rings,” he called out to Dum-e, who came forward with a tiny basket filled with flower petals with two wedding bands laid down over them.  
“Thanks, buddy.” Tony patted his robot before turning to Pepper.  
“Virginia Pepper Potts, do you take Tony to be your lawfully wedded husband?”  
“I do,” Pepper announced, slipping the ring into Tony’s finger.  
“Anthony Edward Stark, do you take Pepper to be your lawfully wedded wife?”  
“I do,” Tony declared putting the ring back where he had always liked seeing it.  
“By the power vested in me by the church that shall not be named due to security reasons, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss.”  
And just as they did, you and Loki stepped into the lawn together and watched the crowd break into applause.  
Like an involuntary reflex, your hand wrapped itself around Loki’s arm, making his head turn towards your touch but never speak of it, just watching you smile with tears at the just married couple with curious eyes, noticing the change in expression over your face as you caught sight of someone in the crowd.  
“Is that Sia? _The_ Sia?”  
  
 **Later that evening**  
“That’s my wife!” Tony yelled into the mic, gathering howls and cheers from the crowd before embracing Pepper.  
“Sia,” he announced into the mic, “you know what to do.”  
And on that cue, the talented voice started with her track 'Genius’ where Tony sang the male verses while dancing with Pepper-making her twirl lightly, keeping her close- under the lit dome the Avengers had so brilliantly constructed the previous night.  
The camera caught Nat and Bruce dancing hand in hand while Hope enjoyed Scott’s moves. Wanda took Steve to the dance floor, making the Captain go red as he tried to keep up with her, nearly colliding into a suave Peter Quill who was dancing with Gamora while her sister enjoyed the view from the bar, sitting right next to Bucky. Thor hooted at Tony while competing with Rocket in a game of Russian roulette of alcohol shots. Clint stood in a corner holding his wife in a warm embrace, nuzzling his face in her hair. Peter and May danced to the song in their own rhythm having the time of their life while Loki stood in another corner with wine in his hand, periodically stealing glances in your direction as you sat alone at the table near him, your smile never reaching your eyes and often faltering in-between moments at some unspoken painful thought.  
  
The evening turned into night as everyone close to the married couple took turns to talk about them, tease them, break into tears and eventually sing karaoke one last time before Tony and Pepper would depart for their honeymoon.  
  
“I’m so glad I don’t have to see your faces for the next two weeks.” Tony waved at the Avengers- who mocked a laugh- before turning to you. “Make sure they don’t break anything or get into fights till I arrive.”  
You couldn’t help but laugh lightly. “I’ll try my best Mr Stark.”  
Tony stood there smiling, his hands in his pockets as turned to look at Pepper- covered in his suit jacket over a pair of flowing blue cotton pants and a white shirt- hugging others one by one. Tony turned back to you, the camera catching the softness in his expression.  
“Y/N,” he began, rubbing his hands a bit, “there is something I have be-”  
“Oh, here she comes,” you interrupted him as Pepper came to give you the farewell hug. “Congratulations Pepper.”  
“Thank you, sweety. Oh, this suit jacket goes so well with your dress.”  
“Thanks,” you acknowledged with a nod at your appearance.  
“This isn’t your jacket?” Tony asked, genuinely curious.  
“Nope,” you and Pepper said in unison.  
“It’s Loki’s.” He heard you say as Pepper dragged him away from you, asking Happy to start the car.  
“Why the hell do you-” his face showed genuine surprise at you before turning to his wife- “why the hell is she wearing Loki’s suit jacket?”  
“Relax, Tony,” Pepper’s voice grew faint as they went out of the front door, “it’s just a jacket.”  
“It’s Loki’s jacket,” was all the camera heard before Pepper opened the car door, kissed Tony shut, hopped in with him to be driven off to the airport.  
You stood by the door for a moment, staring at the empty driveway, lost in thought before Steve’s voice telling you to get inside and away from the cold brought you back.  
  
 **You** : _*sitting in the recording room, your fingers grazing your opposite arm as your eyes focused on something distant for a few seconds before coming back*  
Are you rolling?  
*nods and clears throat* okay, then. Let’s get on with it.  
*inhales*  
Hi, Mr Stark. It’s me, Y/N. *smiles*  
Congratulations on your wedding. You and Pepper looked wonderful today._  
The camera cuts to show footage of Pepper sitting in Tony’s lap, the three of them sharing a warm moment amongst the celebrations  
 _And it would be an understatement to say that your friends…your family was really happy to see you two tie the knot._  
Cut to everyone sitting in the lounge after bidding the couple farewell, with a smile plastered on every face as they each grabbed a beer and toasted to ’ _Pepperoni_ ’.  
  
 _It was quite eventful, the wedding, to say the least. A lot of unexpected things took place._  
A camera out in the balcony captured a cautious Nebula coming out from the direction of the dorms before sneaking out through the elevator.  
 _A lot of unexplored emotions resurfaced as well._  
Another camera hid behind a potted plant to watch Nat and Bruce blushing while holding each other’s hands, not speaking much as they got lost in each other’s eyes before sharing a soft kiss. Natasha took a moment as Bruce tucked a rebellious strand of her red hair behind her ear before taking Bruce by the hand to make him follow her inside her room.  
 _While some things were spoken yet left unsaid._  
A camera followed Loki till his door, watching him open it with after a second’s hesitation to walk inside, his footsteps going sploosh in the puddle of water under his shoes. He watched the water for a good five seconds before opening his bathroom door. A frustrated but controlled groan and a flick of his hand later- when all trace of wetness around his feet and water inside the tub disappeared- he turned to have his eyes caught by the gift he thought he’d left for you.

 _And no matter how much I tried to gather up the courage and talk to you about it, I couldn’t. You were the happiest man in the room tonight and I could not spoil that for any reason whatsoever.  
*pause*  
I know, Mr Stark. I know I’m adopted. Have known it since last night. Please don’t say anything about this to Loki. I think there was some miscommunication and he…um…just…don't. Just know that technically it’s not his fault.   
*inhales deeply*  
And *voice breaks* I came across lab results for a match for yours and my DNA.  
_  
The footage of you frozen over the envelope plays back, this time revealing the partial printed information visible over the exposed part of the page-  
Results of DNA analysis (Paternity Test)  
Child: Y/N Y/L/N  
Alleged Father: Anthony E Stark  
Mother: N/A  
Results:  
You do not expose the page further, instead, your shivering hands send it back inside the envelope as Loki calls out your name from the door.  
  
 _I haven’t…*clears throat* seen the test result. And *wipes away a tear with your finger* I don’t think I’m ready to. I am still trying to *breaks into a teary smile* absorb the fact that my supposed parents are not my parents and that the reason you so graciously opened your doors for me was not you being an old friend of theirs. I know their family friends. All of them suck except…for, what, two people._  
  
A whimper comes from somewhere inside Loki’s room, making him look for the source and end up finding Zuko- wagging his tail while looking at the God with his illuminated brown eyes with specks of golden- beneath a soft pillow on his couch, leaving him perplexed.  
  
 _I *pause* I am really thankful for whatever you’ve done for me Mr Stark but *forces out a lungful of breath* *shakes her head* I can’t do this._  
  
Loki picks up Zuko, looking at him for a moment as the little pupper tries to move his head forward to lick Loki’s face but is unable to do so. Loki moves towards the door, giving a judgmental stare to the camera before turning to the door right next to him and delivering a soft knock.  
  
 _I cannot bring myself to stay here when there are…when you ar…*clears throat* I can’t stay here._  
  
A figure comes into view in the corridor as Loki delivers another knock and calls out your name.  
  
 _Please understand this has more to do with me than you. I need time. *inhales* You won’t be seeing this message for another two weeks and if I’m not wrong none of the other Avengers would inform you about my status till you come back home. *shrugs* If Clint comes to look for me I can handle him *laughs lightly* I just…I’d rather not be here right now. I hope you understand. *whispers* I’m sorry I won’t be able to take care of the Avengers like you asked me to._  
  
“She’s not here,” the figure calls out, making Loki turn towards the voice. Steven stands there, studying every wrinkle in Loki’s face that stands in a daze.  
  
 _Goodbye Mr Stark. *smiles at the camera* Okay, *gets up and quietly drags her bag to the elevator* *whispers* I’m counting on you not screw this up for me Javier. *rolls the bag inside the elevator and turns back to the camera* Take care, buddy *hugs Javier off screen* and get well soon._  
*The watch in the lounge reads ten to two of the morning as the elevator doors shut and open for the front of the Avengers facility.*  
  
“What do you mean she’s gone,” Loki’s face shows a hint of irritation for a second.  
Steven shifts his weight a bit as another door opens and Scott walks out with ruffled hair, half asleep, scratching his stomach and yawning without a care in the world.  
“Hey guys,” his coarse voice greets the two people as he keeps walking with this small steps towards the lounge.  
“Y/N had her bags packed and went out of the facility around two in the morning. I’m guessing she didn’t want anyone to know.”  
Steven’s words creep over Loki slowly as he turns to the door in front of him and turns the handle.  
Scott, who has suddenly heard things he cannot believe, looks at the wizard through squinted eyes even as he walks back to the direction Loki’s standing in.  
Both of them are greeted by a room with no sign of Y/N or her belongings.   
The camera zooms onto his face as Scott gasps at the sight devoid of Y/N before turning back to Steven.  
“You son of a bitch!” He shouts. “Excuse me?” Steve does nothing but furrow his brows.  
“This is not what I meant when I said outdo me you-” Scott’s words are nothing but squeals now, making Steven inhale as he looks into the camera with tired eyes.  
  
 **At the Airport**  
“Skittles or M&Ms?”  
“Tony for the last time, we already have enough of them. I just asked for a bottle of lemon water and some mints.”  
Pepper looks up to see his husband make puppy dog eyes at her.  
“I’m just making sure my wife has everything she needs mid-flight,” he states, spreading his hands and shrugging.  
“One, we are travelling in your private jet which I am a hundred per cent sure you have already stacked with enough Skittles. Two, I am going to set a limit on your card if you keep doing this, Tony. So please, just get me what I told you, husband.”  
A smile spreads of Tony’s face, which he tries to suppress but staggers quite charmingly.  
“Or do you want me to go get it my-”  
“No! No. I’m going. Happy. Come on, pick a Pokemon for me.”  
“Sure, Tony. Want me to hatch some eggs for you too,” Happy spews sarcastically as he takes the phone and starts walking with his boss.  
“Yeah, go ahead, mama hen. We’ll cover enough distance between here and that café for, what, a zubat? Peter said he wanted one but didn’t have any around his house.”  
Just as they left, a notification sound went off on Pepper’s phone, making her turn her attention back to her device, her soft, smiling features turning a bit grim. She did not look up from the phone for a good five minutes and then locked it, placing it in her bag before taking in one elongated breath as she massaged her temples.  
“Here you go, Mrs Stark,” Tony beamed down at her with the bottled water and five packs of mints.  
Pepper smiled as she got up and kissed him.  
“Thank you, Mr Potts,” she whispered before taking the bottle and one pack of mints, “Come on. Let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you guys liked this...or didn't like the cliffhanger, would you like me to post Season 2?


End file.
